Howling Ever After
by IzzyMorgensternXX
Summary: Set during series four and the years after. What happened to the pack after they left school? Lots of romance, action and awkward moments. Follows on from my other story Wild Child (you don't have to read it to understand this story).
1. Chapter 1

Jana stood nervously watching out of the window as she waited for Shannon to arrive. The clock on the wall showed that it was just past eight, and the sun glowed low on the horizon, illustrating how the days were becoming shorter.

It's midnight in Canada; Jana thought to herself, it would be too late to call Rhydian.

She let out a sigh. Rhydian had only been gone a little over a month, and whilst he called her every other day, Jana still felt like a huge part of her was missing and couldn't help but be reminded of the years she had spent waiting for Rhydian to return to the pack.

To return to her.

She wasn't jealous of Maddy; in fact she wanted Maddy and Rhydian to be together. She wanted her brother to be happy. But his family was split between two continents now and knowing that Rhydian couldn't have both Maddy and his family in Stoneybridge made Jana miserable.

She understood why the Smiths never wanted to return. They might have lived in Stoneybridge forever but they belonged in Canada now, Jana could empathise with them, she had spent her whole life with her pack, but now her home was Stoneybridge- that was where she belonged.

Her phone beeped and after a few moments of pressing several buttons she managed to read the text message. Rhydian had taught her how to use phones, but whilst she was adept at using the house phone and simple mobile phones, the I- phone he had bought her for her birthday confused her immensely.

_Good luck. Rhydian. X _

_Good luck to you too **winky face** _Jana replied.

_Hopefully they won't eat me. _

_You'll be ok **smiley face** _

Jana felt excited knowing that soon she would be able to tell everyone their little secret. She recalled the conversation she'd had a week or so earlier. Rhydian had called her up at three in the morning sounding scared, telling her to go outside so that his parents wouldn't hear. Jana had been worried sick, thinking there was something seriously wrong, but when Rhydian told her the truth she burst out laughing, much to his irritation and then chastised him for making her worry so much and waking her up in the middle of the night.

She turned to see Ceri and Gerwyn sitting at the table, Gwyn and Cadwr were there too looking the boxes of kids cereals with a mixture of curiosity and apprehension. When the cubs had joined the pack many of the members had begrudged their presence, complaining about more mouths to feed (although with Jana as leader the pack had been better fed and happier than when Alric was in charge). Now Jana was no longer alpha it was safer for the cubs to remain in the human world. Cadwr was ecstatic of course, he couldn't wait to start school in the autumn, but Gwyn wasn't so impressed by the human world and was glad that she had Meinir to complain to- the pack still hadn't reached a decision on whether Meinir would be allowed to live with them.

The story at the moment however was that Gwyn and Cadwr were children from her stepfather's previous marriage and that Meinir was Gerwyn's youngest sister. The humans were luckily buying it, probably because of the paperwork that Segolia had created for them.

"Excited" Ceri asked, breaking the silence.

"It's her first day at work," Gerwyn replied, "Why would Jana be excited about spending the whole day stuck in an office instead of running free like she's done all holiday?"

"I am excited," Jana said- she was filled with a nervous excitement, "I won't be stuck in an office all day, Sweeney wants me out on patrols as soon as possible."

"I thought she wanted you to go through training first," Ceri asked puzzled, "Not that you need much training, we taught you to fight before you could walk."

"I know," Jana said, rubbing a long scar on the back of her arm. Meinir and Aran has been cruel but good tutors.

"I wonder if Jana's going to be working with the guy that's very warm," Cadwr pondered, "What? Don't give me that look; Shannon said the guy was hot."

Jana laughed loudly. Shannon had been working part-time at Segolia since they'd finished school but it had taken Jana a while to complete the application for the junior security position. The application was a formality given that Jana had been promised a job with Segolia anyway.

Jana waved as she saw Shannon and opened the door to let her in.

"Sorry I'm running late," Shannon said, "I stayed over at Tom's last night and didn't realise how long it would take me to get here."

"It's cool," Jana replied, surprised at how casually she used human slang. She grabbed her lunch from the fridge- removing one of Rhydian's strategically placed post-it notes. They didn't need to be reminded anymore to put the food in the fridge but Jana didn't have the heart to throw them away.

"I'm sure Rhydian will visit soon," Shannon said.

Jana supressed a laugh as she thought of how likely it was that Rhydian would be fleeing to Stoneybridge soon.

Shannon gave Jana a puzzled look, but didn't question her when she shrugged her shoulders.

Jana rummaged through the sweet cupboard; looking for the food she'd stashed away the cubs reach.

"Fizzy worms?" Shannon puzzled.

"Don't ask," Gerwyn replied, "Should we get going?"

Xander stood nervously pulling at the hem of his jumper. Only a week ago he'd been called into head office and given a file of classified information to read.

It contained everything Segolia knew about wolfbloods.

A large chunk of it referred to the red haired girl who was now his responsibility.

He knew she was exceptional, even amongst wild wolfbloods, a sort of psychic werewolf, he thought with a smile- wondering why no comic writer had invented a character like that.

As she walked towards him, all he could think was that if he'd seen her on the street he would never have guessed she had all of these superpowers. He knew that if he had seen her on the street, he wouldn't have just overlooked her however.

She was cute, Xander admitted, not hot, but very pretty.

She looked a lot younger than sixteen, about fourteen or so, and as she raced towards him, flustered, he couldn't help but think that she was so adorable.

"Sorry," Jana apologized, not in the slightest bit out of breath, "I'm not usually this bad at time keeping. I'm Jana but you probably know that, don't you?"

"Nice to meet you Jana," Xander replied smiling, "My name's Xander. It's not short for Alexander before you ask. I'll be your partner, training partner I mean."

Jana nodded slowly. She could understand what Shannon meant when she'd called Xander hotter than a flamethrower in a volcano. She was mesmerised by his shining sapphire blue eyes, messy jet black hair and muscular build, and wondered what it would be like to reach and touch him…

"Jana, are you ok?" Xander asked concerned, she looked so delicate, he wanted to protect her.

"Yeah," Jana in a drawn out way, nodding eagerly. When they'd mentioned company perks, they'd never mentioned anything like this.

Xander smiled with relief and Jana gave him a goofy grin.

"Let me take that," Xander said, offering to take Jana's bag.

"Thanks," Jana replied, he's a real gentleman, she thought, "So where does Miss Sweeney want us to patrol?"

"Just the local woodland," Xander explained, "A little bit of special survey if you get my drift."

Jana looked at him shocked, "You know."

"You're the first wolfblood I've ever met," Xander nodded, "Apart from Miss Sweeney of course."

"When did you find out?" Jana asked.

"Only a week ago," Xander replied, "You don't need to look so worried. I'll protect your secret. As long as you don't try to eat me."

"I brought lunch with me," Jana replied smiling.

"I can tell," Xander answered, earning a laugh from Jana.

"So how did you find out about Segolia?" Jana asked.

"Everyone knew I was obsessed with martial arts from a young age," Xander began, "Well to be honest I was obsessed with Marvel comics, Superman and Batman- I wanted to be a superhero as a kid, but I realised that I was able to climb buildings or anything awesome like that, so I decided to take up karate and aikido. I absolutely hated school, as well, and used to bunk off lessons to practice. My teachers realised, of course, and I got excluded and sent to boarding school in Exeter- not that it stopped me. The teachers there encouraged me, however strange that might sound- teachers encouraging fighting. They put me in contact with Miss Sweeney and as soon as I was old enough to leave I started working here."

"Boarding school in Exeter?" Jana asked, trying to recall something Rhydian had said, "That's near Cornwall, isn't it?"

"Close enough," Xander replied, "Are you from Cornwall? I mean you sound Welsh, but were you from their originally?"

"I was born in Wales," Jana explained, "A little place called Cadir Idris."

"That's where Will Herondale was born," Xander said on impulse, "Sorry my sister is obsessed with books. He's her book husband- whatever that means."

Jana laughed, "My brother's obsessed with manga- it's a new obsession of his, he's an artist."

"Your brother?" Xander asked, they had never mentioned a brother.

"Rhydian," Jana explained, "He's not my actual brother, he's sort of adopted, or well I was sort of adopted by his family. It's a wild wolfblood thing. I asked about Cornwall because he went to a boarding school there when he was ten. He's got blonde hair and blue eyes, and he was probably really tall, even then."

Xander smiled, "I think I do remember him. He was a couple of years younger than, I think he was in my mentoring group. Kept on mentioning about a girl called Maddy."

Jana beamed, "I can't believe you went to the same school."

Xander laughed at her exuberance, "Neither can I."

"But that means you were," Jana began, "You were in care too. Rhydian said it was a school for care kids."

Xander tensed, it wasn't that he didn't want to trust Jana, she was very sweet and loveable and that's what concerned him. He didn't want to tell her about his past because he didn't want to hurt her.

"I'm sorry," Jana said, "I shouldn't have said anything."

"It's ok," Xander replied, "We should probably get going."

Jana raced through the woods laughing at the pure joy of running. Xander followed her, breathing fast and loud and she stopped near a large fallen oak tree waiting for him to catch up.

"How do you do that?" Xander asked trying to catch him breath, his lungs burning.

"Super-speed," Jana explained, "And caffeine- but don't tell Shannon, she's nagged me about drinking decaf for weeks."

Xander laughed, "Can you pick up on anything unusual?"

"There are no obvious scents," Jana said, "Just give me a minute."

Xander watched as Jana kneeled next to him, her long thin hands touching the warm ground, the midday sun making her hair shimmer. A gust of wind blew a few curls into her eyes and Xander reached out to brush them behind her ear.

Jana smiled, her cheeks turning bright crimson, "I can't pick up on anything using Eolas. Either there's no one here, or else they're to shield their scent amazingly well."

"Wolfbloods can actually do that?" Xander asked.

Jana nodded, "Although few ever need to. They usually mean trouble."

"Maybe we should get some lunch," Xander suggested, wanting to get out of the woods as quickly as possible. The report said that there were definitely wild wolfbloods, in the local area- not Jana's pack of course- they were travelling through the Midlands for a bit before returning to Wales for the winter. He didn't want Jana out here if there were dangerous wolfbloods waiting to attack them.

"They won't be here for a while, maybe we should," Jana began before hearing a loud growl, "Xander."

At any other time he would have been thrilled at the way his name sounded when she spoke.

He grabbed her hand and began to run quickly.

"We need to climb one of the trees," Jana said, "Otherwise it'll easily catch us."

Xander nodded and began climbing the tallest tree. Jana hesitated, remembering how she'd fallen out of a tree as a toddler.

She heard a menacing growl and grabbed onto a low branch just as jaw snapped at her ankle.

"Why did you hesitate?" Xander asked worriedly, "Jana don't ever do that to me again."

Jana stood next to him, her mind racing trying to think of a plan. She was aware of his arm around her waist, trying to keep her steady.

The wolf snarled at them, it's brown fur ruffled and its eyes murderous.

Xander reached for his phone with the hand that wasn't holding the branch above him, hoping to call for reinforcements.

His heart almost stopped when he saw Jana jump from the tree and land in wolf form. She was so beautiful- a bright crimson colour, with large golden eyes. She was so small compared to the other wild wolfblood but was fearless as she challenged him. Xander could tell that the jump hadn't gone exactly to plan, Jana kept the weight off her front right paw, it was obviously hurting her.

Xander reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a tranquiliser dart, waiting for a chance to use it. He watched as the wolfblood lunged at Jana, and saw how she expertly dodged the attack. She didn't need any training, she was already perfect, Xander thought.

Xander aimed the dart to land in the wild wolfbloods back and threw it, however the wolf sprang and Jana dodged to the side, the dart hitting her injured leg.

She yelped, looking up at Xander for help. He jumped down from the tree, landing close to the wild wolfblood and threw a dart at the animal, this time it hit the target and the wild wolf fled into the distance.

Any satisfaction Xander felt was short lived. He watched as Jana transformed back into human form, yawning frequently. The dose of sedative was too much for someone of her size and Xander reached Jana just as she collapsed. He pulled her into his arms. He thought love at first sight only occurred in fairy tales but he knew he was completely wrong.

He watched as she slept, her breathing slow but even. He knew he had to get her to a wolfblood doctor, the sedative could have done a lot of damage and her wrist was badly sprained if not fractured.

He knew he would be in trouble when Miss Sweeney heard about this, but all cared about was Jana.

He had to protect her.

Jana woke up to bright lights shining above her, and felt someone's hand in hers. She knew she was in Dr Whitewood's lab and smiled as she saw Shannon.

"Are you ok?" Shannon asked.

Jana nodded, still feeling exhausted.

"Becca's gone to tell Miss Sweeney about what happened," Shannon explained, "Xander's been so worried about you. I think you really made an impression on him."

"Do you want to see him?" Shannon asked.

Jana nodded.

Xander walked through the doors moments later, his face was pale and creased with worry. He rushed to Jana's side holding her hand- the one that wasn't wrapped in bandages- he was grateful it was just a sprain, but felt guilty- if he had done something then Jana wouldn't have got hurt.

He brushed a stray curl away from her face, she was feverish and still exhausted, barely able to stay awake- but at least there wouldn't be any permanent damage.

She smiled before falling asleep, snoring gently and for the first time in his life Xander let himself believe that he could be totally completely happy.


	2. Chapter 2

It had only been a few days since the incident with the wild wolfblood but it felt like a lifetime had passed. Jana stood in front of the mirror trying to remember what she was supposed to with each of the makeup products. She knew she needed to look glamorous.

She pulled back her hair into a high ponytail, envious of girls who had easily manageable hair that didn't take over half an hour to brush.

She felt nervous and told herself to calm down, it wasn't like Xander and her were going on a date she reminded herself, he just thought they should go somewhere special for lunch.

Maybe he did mean it be a date, Jana thought panicked, humans could be so confusing. Wild wolfbloods declared the love openly, and loudly in front of the whole pack, they didn't go on dates they just married straight away.

Jana grimaced as she thought of the guys in her pack, they were all awful- too old fashioned or obsessed with hunting. She was glad she had more choice now.

She was aware of Gwyn watching her and beckoned to the cub to come in. Gwyn watched Jana as she put on her make-up, wondering why teenagers wore that rubbish and who had corrupted her alpha.

"All this for a cowarer," Gwyn said puzzled.

"Don't call him that," Jana snapped.

"Sorry, but don't you think it's a bit excessive."

Jana shook her head, "Most girls wear makeup."

"Not wild wolfbloods."

"I'm not wild anymore and I will never be properly wild again."

"Neither will I," Gwyn admitted glumly, "Just don't let Xander drag you away from the life you were born for."

"I won't."

"Holy mother of wolfbloods!" she heard someone shout from downstairs, "Rhydian you idiot! You're sixteen, she's not even sixteen. Yes I know she'll be sixteen in a matter of days, but you still have the rest of your lives together. I can't believe you'd do anything this ridiculous, where are you going to live, do you even have a steady job. I'm not surprised the Smiths are so angry with you."

Jana smiled, Rhydian had told them his little secret. Maddy was pregnant.

Jana couldn't wait to be an aunt and had already started sending Rhydian ideas for the baby's clothes, decorations for the nursery etc. until Rhydian had told her to stop constantly emailing him.

Best of all, Rhydian would be coming back to visit them in a few weeks' time and Jana couldn't wait. She knew Rhydian was probably getting an earful from the Smiths and hoped Ceri and Gerwyn would calm down enough to see how great things were going to be.

"Do I look like a grandpa to you?" Gerwyn asked as Jana walked down the stairs, she smiled in response.

"I think it's wonderful news," Ceri said, "Although I expect Rhydian will be sleeping out on the tundra for the next few nights."

Gerwyn shook his head, "I can't believe he'd do something like this."

"I can," Jana replied, grabbing a slice of toast.

" He is your son," Ceri added, "And anyway wolfbloods often mate young, it's just our way of life."

"Yes, but there's young and then there's underage," Gerwyn replied.

Ceri rolled her eyes, "Such a human concept. You were more than happy for Rhydian to marry Jana as soon as she turned twelve, you said that to Alric yourself remember."

"Rhydian lives in the human world," Gerwyn said, "With tame wolfbloods and their own rules and traditions."

"It's not that bad," Jana said, "I thought you would be happy."

Gerwyn laughed, "Of course I am but who wants to be a grandfather at 40?"

Jana heard the sound of a car horn outside and rushed to grab her bag.

"Have a good day," Ceri said smiling.

Xander had started picking her Jana up for work earlier that week which had been an unexpected surprise. Xander said he didn't want Jana wasting money on a bus ticket when they were both travelling the same way but she knew it was because they wanted to spend more time with together outside of work.

"Be sensible," Gerwyn said, "Have a good day."

Jana smiled, "I will," she said before rushing out of the door.


	3. Chapter 3

Jana glanced down at her phone nervously. Please reply, she begged, as if she wished that she could somehow telepathically communicate with Rhydian. She'd said it was an emergency, and that might have been a huge exaggeration, but she needed him now more than ever.

She glanced up at Xander and watched as he drove, the car winding down through the narrow streets as they travelled closer to the coast, the sea glistening in the midday sunshine.

She was fascinated by him, the way the muscles stood out on his arms as she he held the steering wheel, his messy black hair, those striking sapphire eyes. Shannon said that Xander had carried her back to the lab after the accident in the woods and Jana had been thrilled at the idea. She knew that she had a crush on Xander, however illogical that might be, considering that she'd only known him for a week or so. There was only one other boy she'd been attracted to- Rhydian- but it had been awkward, and Jana thought sickeningly, somewhat like incest in a way. With Xander everything she felt was pure, honest and good, and filled with an excitement like running through the woods during a lunar eclipse.

Her phone beeped.

_Jana, are you ok? Where are you? What's going on? Rhydian X_

_Hi Rhydian, I'm ok, I'm going on date, I think. I need your advice, what am I supposed to do? Jana XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX_

_I THOUGHT IT WAS A GENUINE EMERGENCY!_

_Oops, sorry bro. Any advice though? Jana XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX_

_Don't do that to me again, Jana. You never told me you were dating anyone. Rhydian X_

_I'm not sure if I am! We're going to a restaurant for lunch, is that considered a date? What do I do? Jana XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX_

_Don't order raw meat. It sounds like it is a date. Try asking Shannon for advice. Rhydian X_

_I did, she just smiled and told me to be myself. Jana XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX_

_Definitely a date then. You'll be fine. :P Rhydian X_

_Thanks. What does :P mean? Jana XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX_

Jana smiled. Her first ever date, she couldn't believe it. She hoped she wasn't going to make a fool of herself. Xander's probably had dated quite a few girls, he's the kind of guy who could have any girl he likes, Jana thought, why is he choosing to go on a date with me?

"You should probably close your eyes now," Xander said suddenly.

Jana glanced out of the window looking out across the water and at the way the cliffs dropped onto the beach below. "I'm not afraid of heights," she said, "I'll be ok."

Xander smiled, "I know. I want it to be a surprise, we're nearly there."

Jana closed her eyes obediently and a few moments later the car stopped. She heard the car doors open and close, and then she felt Xander take Jana's hand in his.

"No peeking," Xander said, "Not until we get inside."

"Ok," Jana said, "But I should warn you, I have an ability to trip over flat ground with my eyes open."

"It's ok," Xander said with a laugh, putting an arm around her shoulders, "Though I doubt you are as ungraceful as you think."

Jana smiled, feeling her cheeks become warmer and knowing that she was blushing. She could feel butterflies in her stomach and her heart was racing. How could she be this lucky, to be on a date with someone like Xander? Her life hadn't been completely miserable, but things like this didn't happen to her, she was used to her friends going on dates, being in love, having families, even- she was usually the one watching from the side lines, hoping that one day she could share in their happiness.

She felt strong arms lifting her up, and her feet leaving the ground but before she could say anything, Xander announced that they arrived and that she could open her eyes.

She looked around in wonder. The restaurant overlooked the sea, its large windows showing how the waves lapped against the shore, the décor was beautiful and exotic- a mass or reds and purples. The tables were made of dark brown, almost black wood and painted with pictures of white, red and purple orchids. The lighting was natural, due to the large windows, however glass chandeliers hung from the ceilings, their beads like falling raindrops.

Xander grabbed a couple of menus, in a way that suggested that he spent a lot of time here, before heading to a table near to the balcony.

"Amazing, isn't it?" Xander asked, looking at the expression of Jana's face.

"How did you find this place?" Jana asked, taking a seat opposite him.

"Complete and utter accident," Xander replied, "I got lost coming back from Newcastle, it was shortly after I moved up north to work for Segolia. I found the restaurant and was planning to go in just to ask for directions, but I ended up spending most of the evening here. I recommend the mushroom and steak stroganoff, although everything here tastes awesome."

"I guess you come here a lot then?" Jana asked, even though she already knew the answer.

Xander nodded, "Usually once a fortnight. I like just sitting on the beach and looking out at the ocean, I find it relaxing. I suppose it's a bit like when you're running in the woods- you just feel at peace."

Jana nodded understandingly, "It would be awesome to spend a full moon here, not that it would be an option."

"Why not?" Xander asked.

"It wouldn't be safe," Jana said, "Even here. I wouldn't want to risk being seen."

"So where do you usually go for the full moon?" Xander asked, just as the waitress approached.

The waitress raised an eyebrow as she saw Xander and Jana, but didn't say anything. She took their orders before departing abruptly.

"I usually come here alone," Xander explained, "Don't worry she didn't overhear our conversation."

"We usually spend full moon in a cellar," Jana explained, "It might sound a bit underwhelming but it's actually quite nice. Of course, it won't compare to going to Norway for next full moon."

"Norway?" Xander asked.

"Yeah, Segolia flies us out to Norway at each full moon," Jana added, "I don't know what Norway's like. Uncle Gerwyn says it's pretty cool but he prefers Wales."

"I wish I was a wolfblood," Xander said.

"It is awesome," Jana agreed, "But sometimes it can be difficult, sometimes I just want to be like everyone else and live a normal life."

"I don't want you to be like anyone else," Xander said, "I like you the way you are."

Jana felt as if the butterflies in her stomach had gone flying through her body. I like you the way you are, surely that couldn't mean what she thought it meant? She had to be just reading into it, right?

Jana smiled giddily, stumbling over her words, "Thank you. I like you too."

Jana blushed, had she really just said that? What was he going to think?

Xander smiled, "Thanks."

The food arrived breaking the awkwardness between them.

Jana bit into a piece of the steak. It was amazing, cooked to perfection; it was the best thing she had ever tasted.

Xander smiled, seeing the look on her face, "I told you this place was amazing."

"So what do you do outside of work?" Jana asked.

"Martial arts, mostly," Xander began, "Used to play guitar a while ago, and my friends kept on talking about starting a band. They're at uni now, and I'm here so it's unlikely we'll start a band or anything like that, but I'd like to start playing guitar again."

Jana smiled, "That sounds cool."

"What about you?" Xander asked.

"I don't really do much," Jana admitted, "Mostly just running in the woods, helping around the house, spending time at Shannon and Tom's or the Kafe, teaching Cadwr and Gwyn how to read and write."

"Cadwr and Gwyn?" Xander asked.

"They're like younger siblings to me," Jana said, "They used to live in the wild, but the wild pack didn't like them too much, so now they live with me, Meinir and my aunt and uncle. You have a sister, don't you, I remember you mentioning her before?"

Xander nodded, knowing that the inevitable conversation that he had been dreading was about to start. How could he even explain his family to Jana without mentioning everything that had happened? How could he give such an awful answer to such an innocent question? He looked at Jana, her emerald eyes showing her curiosity, her innocence. He wanted to tell her the truth because he wanted to be honest with her, and although a part of his brain screamed to him of his past experiences, of how he shouldn't just open his heart and trust her so easily, he wanted her to know every part of him. But he wanted to protect her to, and it was tearing him apart.

"Yeah, I have a sister and a brother," Xander started, hearing the tension in his voice, "But I don't speak to my brother. My sister's just a little younger than you, she's fifteen."

"What is she like?" Jana asked.

The question was innocent enough, but Xander felt his eyes sting. He didn't want to see the look of pity on her face. He didn't want her to one of the many who'd given him that same sorry look; he didn't want her to regret asking her question.

"She likes books, a lot," Xander began, "And music- it's our family's thing. She used to play piano before, before she got sick."

Jana placed a hand on Xander's, "I shouldn't have said anything. I knew your past wasn't great, I shouldn't have mentioned about your family."

"Jana," Xander said, squeezing her hand, "It's ok. I'm ok."

Jana looked at Xander worriedly. She had never expected him to be able to show such vulnerability.

"My sister was involved in a car accident," Xander began quietly, "My brother was drunk and…"

Xander could feel the tears burning in his eyes. He couldn't go on, he couldn't tell her the rest of the story. It would be too much for the both of them.

He felt Jana's warm arms wrap around him. He had never expected a wild wolfblood to be so gentle, so understanding- he thought that wild wolfbloods would be primal and animalistic but Jana wasn't at all like that. She was an enigma and that's what drew him to her, she was a puzzle he needed to solve- as if the cure for all of his life's problems was locked behind her shining emerald eyes and curly scarlet hair.

He looked up and saw her concerned yet sympathetic expression.

"I've never told anyone before," Xander admitted, "Never."

"I understand," Jana replied, "We all have things that we'd rather not talk about."

Xander saw the pained look that Jana wore on her face, as she recalled a distant memory. He hated the idea that she had ever suffered in anyway.

"I wanted to tell you," Xander said, "I wanted to be honest with you. I've never wanted to talk about it with anyone before- not my social worker, not my foster parents or my teachers."

"Why me?" Jana asked.

"You're not like anyone else, Jana," Xander replied, "Throughout my life I've felt so out of place. Like I was sleepwalking through life, going through the motions, whilst everyone and everything was rushing past me. Everyone was doing amazing things with their lives and I was consumed by the past, stuck playing the same events over and over in my mind. I didn't know who I wanted to be or what I wanted to do because part of me was still clinging on to the little boy version of me who wished he could go back in time and change everything. Then I met you and I woke up and I realised that I needed to let go of little boy version of me because if I went back in time and changed everything then I would have never met you. I wanted to tell you because you're the only person I've ever met who's had the power to affect me so profoundly, and because I like you- a lot."

Jana blushed, "As more than a friend?"

"Yes, Jana," Xander said.

"But I'm not anything special," Jana began, "You could have any girl in the world."

"I don't want any girl in the world," Xander argued, "I only want you. I know it sounds crazy, we've only known each other for a week, but it feels like I've known you for years."

Jana nodded, "The pack believes in something called enaid-cyfeillion. It's hard to explain but they say that it's when two people meet and it's like their souls remember each other from a past life or something like that. It's like their souls realise the truth before they do."

Xander smiled, taking Jana's hand in his, "I like the sound of that."

"So do I," Jana said, "And I like you, as more than a friend. From that first day I knew that you would mean a lot to me. All my life I thought I was standing on the side lines watching my friends being happy and just waiting to see whether the same thing would happen to me soon. Now I realise I was waiting for you."

Almost instinctively, Jana leaned in and felt her eyes close. She had never been kissed before and she was overwhelmed by the adrenaline rushing through her, it felt like a thousand nights of lunar eclipses all merged into one. She felt almost dizzy with passion, and if Xander's arms hadn't been wrapped around her she would have probably fainted.

She gasped for air like someone who had nearly drown and just been saved. Xander smiled at her a hand cupping her cheek.

"We probably shouldn't do that in public too often," Xander said, "We might cause a scene."

Jana smiled, "I'm notorious for creating a scene."

"Well if that's the case," Xander began.

Jana rolled her eyes; she glanced down at her watch.

"Xander! We were supposed to be back at headquarters fifteen minutes ago," Jana said panicking.

"We'll just tell them we got held up with some important wolfblood business," Xander replied.

"I'm sure that will convince them," Jana said sarcastically.

Xander took Jana's hand in his, "Let them think what they want to think. All that matters to me is you."

They kissed as the sun beamed through the windows illuminating them like two glowing angels.


	4. Chapter 4

Jana picked up her blue and green jumper and placed it in the rucksack balanced on the end of her bed. The jumper was too small for her now and had holes in the sleeves but it was the only thing that was appropriate for Norway.

Norway, Jana thought excitedly, imagining running wild over the glaciers and through the fjords. She was already buzzing with energy- as much as she didn't mind the den, the idea of running free again with the moon shining brightly above her, calling to her, was exhilarating.

She heard the beep of a car horn and saw Xander's familiar silver BMW. Jana was confused; Xander knew she wouldn't be able to see him tonight, what was he doing here? Surely, he hadn't just driven all the way here to pick her up and take her to the offices, (where they were going to meet for before travelling to the airport), but knowing Xander he probably would.

Jana and Xander still hadn't managed to track down the wild wolfblood that had attacked them, and as time went on they became concerned- wondering who the wild wolfblood was and what they wanted. Miss Sweeney had sent out a team of marksmen to try to find the wolfblood's scent, but they had been unsuccessful and concluded that the wolf must have left the area. Xander and Jana doubted that.

Jana and Xander had spent almost every moment outside of work together since they started dating. They had spent a lot of time at the beach and also in the woods surrounding Stoneybridge- the places that meant so much to them. They even visited the Kafe once, but everyone had bombarded them with questions, wanting to know how they'd met, how long they'd been together, and they'd felt so awkward that they hadn't gone back there since.

Jana raced down the stairs, and smiled as she saw Xander sitting at the table talking to Ceri.

"I was just telling Xander that he'll have to come over for hog roast soon," Ceri said to Jana.

"That sounds good," Jana answered, "We haven't had a hog roast in weeks."

"I'd love to come for dinner, Mrs Morris," Xander replied.

"It's Ceri," Ceri said, "And you're welcome to come over any time you like."

Jana walked over to Xander, kissing him on the cheek, "I thought you wouldn't be coming over tonight."

"I have a surprise," Xander said beaming, passing a piece of paper to Jana.

Jana glanced down at it- plane tickets to Norway.

"A little present from Miss Sweeney," Xander explained, "I'm not sure if she knows about us being a couple, but I imagine Shannon probably mentioned it at some point."

Shannon and Tom had been thrilled to hear that Jana had a boyfriend. Xander and Shannon had known each other before Jana started work at Segolia, and now they were good friends. Tom had been unsure of Xander at first, wanting reassurances that he would treat Jana well, but once Xander had promised that he would protect Jana with his life, they had become good friends too.

"It's going to be so great," Jana exclaimed, "We always talked about spending the full moon together in Norway."

"Apparently they're going to fly us out this evening," Xander added, "And we'll spend the night at this little place on the west coast just outside of Oslo- there's a lake there and a miniature log cabin hotel that Segolia owns and the views are spectacular from what I've heard. Then the following day we'll be able to visit Oslo and go sightseeing."

"Stop making me jealous," Ceri said light-heartedly, "I have to spend full moon with your uncle."

Jana smiled; she thought it was sweet that her uncle opted to stay at home with Ceri rather than going to Norway. Ceri wanted to stay at home to look after the cubs before the full moon, and make sure they weren't raiding the cupboards or watching horror movies when they should be asleep (which they had done before when she'd let Meinir babysit them).

"We should probably get going," Jana said, looking at her watch, "Only an hour until the flight and we can't be late for this."

Xander laughed, pulling Jana into his arms, "We'll get there in plenty of time, stop worrying."

Jana kissed Xander, knowing that that night was going to be awesome.


	5. Chapter 5

The moon glowed brightly on the horizon, its ivory semicircle dominating the twilight sky. Its glow gave the snow a strange metallic blue hue and added to the mysteriousness of the place.

The hotel was a small complex of log cabins. Steam rose gently from the chimneys, flying into the crisp night air.

Jana and Xander's rooms overlooked the fjord with its steep pine tree covered slopes and half frozen lake. Jana regretted that she wouldn't be spending much time in her room, as it was very cosy- with its big double bed and ensuite bathroom and the little chocolates on the pillow- but she knew she would be spending the whole night running wild exploring the abandoned harbour and the surrounding mountains. She wondered what Xander would do whilst she was in her wolf form- she didn't expect him to stay outside without her and it wouldn't be possible to keep up with her. It was the first time that she realised that their difference in species might have an impact on their relationship and the things they could do together.

She knocked on Xander's door, hearing the TV in the background, and moments later Xander opened the door, letting Jana into the room.

"So what do you think of the hotel?" Xander asked.

"It's so amazing," Jana began exuberantly, "You wouldn't think that Segolia could afford somewhere like this or that it would be so fancy considering only wolfbloods usually stay here and only at full moons. I can't believe they have Wi-Fi and phone signals here too- I've been sending Rhydian so many pictures, he's so jealous of us. Maddy and her parents still lock themselves in for the full moon, even though they live miles away from the nearest town. This place is so amazing, I wonder if they'll fly Rhydian to Norway for full moons once he starts working for Segolia."

Xander smiled, he loved Jana's exuberance and he also loved the bond she had with her brother, it reminded him of how things used to be with him and his sister, before he moved north to work for Segolia.

"This is your first time abroad, isn't it?" Xander asked.

Jana nodded, "It's my first proper holiday too, I've only ever been on a school camping trip."

"That sounds cool," Xander replied, "My school never did anything as exciting as that- we just visited museums, I think we might have gone to the beach once."

"You didn't miss out on much," Jana said, "The camping trip was a bit of a disaster. Maddy and Rhydian wanted to find this den that belonged to Maddy's ancestor hundreds of years ago, but Liam, you remember him- the guy I can't stand- well it was before he knew about us, he wanted to see the den too because his ancestor was a wolfblood hunter that had killed Maddy's ancestor. Well, long story short, they found the den and then it collapsed and Rhydian and I had to rescue Liam and Maddy. Also, do you remember the three K's from the Kafe? Well, Shannon and I were put on their team for an orienteering exercise and we ended up getting completely lost because Katrina didn't know how to use the compass. I had to throw it in the river before she let me help them with directions and they thought I had an imaginary friend called Ivy, or something like that, because ivy point south and they didn't understand that."

Xander laughed, he remembered meeting the three Ks. They had pestered him and Jana with questions, asking them everything about their relationship. Whilst they had seemed nosey and a little materialistic, he knew deep down they were alright people. He could tell that they did like Jana, even if they didn't always understand her. Xander wondered what Rhydian would be like, he had heard so much about him from Jana and given the way she talked about her brother he half expected him to a superhero. He knew Rhydian would be returning to Stoneybridge soon, and Xander felt nervous, wondering what Rhydian would think of Jana and his relationship.

"Well it's good that you can find your way without using a compass," Xander said, "It will help us if we get lost."

"I'll just use Eolas," Jana replied, "Wait what-"

"Well I was hoping that Miss Vilkas would do me the honour of spending the full moon with me," Xander said with a smile.

"Yes, of course! But how will you keep up with me?" Jana wondered, "Wolfbloods move very fast, especially in wolf form."

"Segolia has quad bikes," Xander explained, "Specifically built for this terrain."

"It's going to be cold though," Jana said.

"I know," Xander said holding up a ski jacket, "I'll be fine Jana."

Jana smiled, "I'd love to spend full moon with you. But please just be careful, I don't want you getting hypothermia."

Xander smiled, winding a strand of Jana's curly hair around his finger, "You don't need to worry so much, tonight will be great."

"I definitely think so," Jana said before kissing Xander.

Suddenly, the ringing of a phone interrupted them.

"My sister," Xander explained, before answering, "Hello, Ellie. How are you? Yeah, Norway's great, did you get the photos I sent you… If only, I know how much you want to travel… I'll definitely visit you this weekend… Oh, ok, one minute. Jana, are you free this weekend?"

Jana nodded, "Yeah, why?"

"My sister, Elloisya, she wants to meet you. Yeah, Ellie, I'm just asking her now."

"I'd love to meet your sister, are you sure you're ok with me tagging along?"

Xander nodded understandingly, "Its ok. In fact, Ellie needs your help. She says you're likely to be more of a help than I will be."

Jana raised an eyebrow in confusion.

"Dress shopping," Xander explained, "For the annual welcome back to school dance at my sister's boarding school. It's a bit like prom- although the way my sister's been going on about it, you'd think she was planning her wedding."

Jana smiled, "Tell her I'll be more than happy to help."

"Thank you," Xander said before picking up the phone, "You don't have to worry about me picking out something horrendous… the incident with the canary yellow dress was years ago… ok a year ago… you're never going to forget it are you… thought so… wait, what do you mean you have a date for the dance?... I didn't know the guy's school was invited… you should have told me earlier… yes I know you're fifteen, but I'm not going to just let you go out with any random guy… I'm your brother, it's my right to be overprotective…ok, ok, we'll talk about it on Saturday… Love you, too. See you soon. Bye. Bye."

Jana smiled sympathetically.

"I'm sorry about that," Xander said, "My sister can be pretty stubborn at times."

"It's ok."

"You don't have any siblings, birth siblings I mean?" Xander asked inquisitively, "I know you've got Rhydian and that you grew up together for a while before he went into care, so I suppose he's almost like a birth sibling.

Jana bit her lip, avoiding looking at Xander, she felt a tear roll down her cheek.

"Jana, what's wrong?" Xander asked concerned, he hugged her, the sounds of her sobs tearing at his heart.

"I had a younger brother, Pedr," Jana began shakily; "He died when he was a baby. His father was the heir of another pack and my mother and brother were exiled and sent to live with the other pack. I don't know what happened, my father wouldn't tell me but… a couple of years later… we were told that they'd died."

"Jana," Xander said quietly, hugging her more tightly. He helped her sit down on the edge of bed, afraid that she would crumble at any moment.

He'd spent years thinking he was the only one who knew what it means to lose your family, he knew the pain that came from that and didn't want to even comprehend that Jana had suffered in the way he had.

"My sister," Xander began, "Elloisya, she isn't very well."

"It's ok if you don't want to talk about it," Jana said.

"I want you to know," Xander replied, "But I'm afraid to burden you with it if…"

"It's ok," Jana answered, "I can handle it."

"My sister," Xander repeated, "You remember what I said about the car crash? My sister and I were at a party at the town hall. Ellie and her friends had organised a Harry Potter themed Yule Ball party for a charity fundraiser and Ellie had asked, well more like ordered, me to come along to help with the lighting and the sound. She was seven at the time of the accident and I was eleven, I'd just turned eleven. I remember our parents dropping us off at the hall, they had a dinner date the same night and my brother was supposed to be borrowing the car for work and then picking us all up once he'd finished. The party was amazing; my sister is great at organising events.

"My brother picked us up later that evening but I knew something wasn't right, I couldn't explain it, but he seemed a bit out of it. I told Ellie that John wasn't well and that we shouldn't go with him, we should ask whether or not she could get a lift with one of her friend's parents. John and I had never really gotten on, we bickered a lot, and Ellie thought that I'd had an argument with him and that was why I didn't want to get in the car with him. She didn't realise my concerns were genuine.

"I absolutely hated myself for allowing her to get in the car and not insisting that we waited or called Mum and Dad to ask them for help. I didn't want to leave her in the car on her own, and I never thought the accident would happen. I don't remember much of what happened, but I got off lightly- just concussion and a few cuts and bruises. My brother, the coward that he is- ran away and the police found him later, he's rotting in jail now, but it'll never be for long enough in my opinion. Elloisya, she was very badly injured, she can't walk and she struggles with some day to day things- but she's extremely clever though, the boarding school she's at it for children with disabilities who are going to be the next Nobel Prize winning scientists or BAFTA winning actors or actresses."

"Oh Xander," Jana said, tears running down her face. Xander was crying too, he'd never told anyone any of this before, and it wasn't even the worst of it all.

"My father couldn't cope," Xander continued, "He left a few weeks later, I knew my parents were considering a divorce before the accident but they were trying to make things work between them. The accident, it just changed everything. It's not uncommon for parents to divorce after something like that.

"I was never academically gifted, I was more of sports guy, I got excluded for truancy. I think I thought that the more I practised martial arts, the better placed I would be to protect my sister, as if by training harder I could make up for not protecting her before. I didn't realised that my exclusion would affect my mother so badly- that she was convinced that she was failing us. It all became too much for her and she decided she didn't want to have that kind of life- I wish I'd been able to find someone who could help her.

"I was sent to the school that Rhydian attended and my sister was sent to a primary school a few miles away from where I was living. It was a special needs place, which wasn't right for her at all considering she could have passed MENSA tests whilst the other kids struggled with English and Maths. I think she spent most of the time just sitting around reading- it's probably why she's obsessed with books now. She lived with a foster family but they didn't really understand how complex her medical needs were, so she was moved to the boarding school. It's a great place; apparently some of the aristocracy sent their children there a few years ago. It was two hundred miles away from my own school however. Fortunately, my social worker was understanding and she'd drive me up there to see my sister every month or so."

"Xander, I'm so sorry," Jana said, "I'm so sorry."

"I wanted to honest with you," Xander said, "And I trust you. I didn't expect you to have experienced a similar thing and I'm sorry for your loss."

"I have Rhydian and Auntie Ceri and Uncle Gerwyn," Jana began tearfully, "And Meinir and the cubs. And my father, Aran and Bryn, wherever they are now. I don't know how I would have coped without them. I want you to know that I love you and that you'll always have me, I'll always be there for you."

"I love you, Jana," Xander said, "I'll be there for you too."


	6. Chapter 6

The moon was higher in the sky and Jana stared up at it happily, feeling the energy of the transformation running through her veins.

She looked down at her hands, it wouldn't be long until she was in wolf form. She was nervous, although Xander had seen her as a wolf before, it hadn't been like this, it felt she was sharing some secret part of herself with him and it made her feel closer to Xander.

"Excited?" Xander asked.

Jana nodded, "It should only be a few minutes now."

Xander took Jana's hand in his, "I didn't think that it would be at all like this. I guess Hollywood werewolves are a lot different from wolfbloods, they never mention anything about veins changing colour or the eyes or anything like that in the movies."

"It seems strange when you consider that there are probably wolfbloods working in the film industry," Jana agreed, "I suppose they wouldn't want to make the werewolves too much like wolfbloods in case people figured it out."

"How did Shannon and Tom find out about the wolfbloods?" Xander asked.

"Shannon first saw a wolfblood when she was seven and she spent years trying to track it down, even though everyone thought she was crazy or making it all up. She actually believed Maddy was a werewolf for a while, but Rhydian and Maddy were able to hide the secret from her and Shannon thought she was wrong. It wasn't until Auntie Ceri and Bryn went to Stoneybridge to bring Rhydian back to the pack that Tom and Shannon found out about us. There was a standoff between Rhydian's family and Maddy, and Shannon and Tom saw them all in wolf form."

"It must have been strange for them, believing their friends were human and then finding out otherwise," Xander began, "It was a bit of a shock for me, finding out there was a whole other species living alongside my own. Just one thing, it's been worrying me a bit, there are no vampires are there? And what about witches, do they exist too?"

Jana laughed loudly, "No, there are no vampires. I guess pack healers are a little like witches, though I wouldn't recommend saying that to them, wolfbloods that use ancean are a bit like witches too I suppose. According to Auntie Ceri witches do exist but they aren't a separate species, they're just humans living a different way of life."

"That's good to know, at least I don't have to worry about bloodsucking monsters, even if I might still be in danger of being turned into a frog."

Jana laughed, rolling her eyes. She looked up at the moon and then smiled at Xander. He nodded in understanding and Jana began to transform, feeling the energy of the moon speaking to her.

She could feel the cold snow beneath her paws and howled happily. It reminded her of the winter she'd spent in Wales as a wolf, running free, the only winter she'd had as a wild wolf.

Xander stared at her in wonder reaching out a hand to stroke her soft scarlet fur. Jana grinned at him and he felt at ease.

"So beautiful," he murmured.

Jana howled again before looking towards the harbour. Xander understood and turned on the engine of the quadbike, he quickly set off after Jana as she raced towards the water.

There was a small stone wall around the edge and Jana ran along next to it looking out at the sea beyond, Not quite able to comprehend that only a few hundred miles away across the water was her home.

"I'm not quite sure what wolfbloods do on full moons," Xander admitted, "I guess in the wild pack you probably hunted but it's not like we need to hunt here and I'd rather that we didn't kill any animals tonight. We coold build a snowman perhaps?"

Jana grinned happily.

"Or maybe we could play fetch?" Xander teased.

Jana growled.

"I was just kidding," Xander said as he climbed off the bike.

Jan pawed at the snow try to get it to form a ball, but ultimately flicking the snow all over Xander.

Xander laughed, picking up a small scoop of snow turning it over again and again in his hands.

Jana eventually got the hang of moving the snow to form a small mound, and Xander helped to build the snowman's torso and head. When the snowman was nearly finished Jana raced off as Xander hunted for stones to use as the snowman's eyes and mouth.

"I thought we weren't playing fetch?" Xander said, as Jana dropped the bundle of twigs at his feet.

She laughed in a wolf like way, nudging Xander's leg with her muzzle.

"There, all done," Xander announced.

Jana howled happily and Xander joined in moments later.

Jana looked at him cheekily before darting off and Xander knew he would be he'd be exhausted come the morning.

Jana hadn't managed to make it back to her own room before she fell asleep. She'd changed back into wolf form sometime around four-ish and Xander and her had spent a good couple of hours talking and kissing after that. She felt Xander's arms around her as he slept next to her. She brushed a strand of hair away from his face and placed a kiss on his cheek. There was nowhere else she wanted to be.


	7. Chapter 7

The car weaved through the country roads, the rain falling down heavily and puddles of water spraying up as the car moved through them. Whilst Jana's nomadic lifestyle as a wild wolfblood had made her appreciate nature in a way that most humans didn't, she couldn't understand why someone would build a school in such a remote location, even if the area was very beautiful.

Xander tried to hide his cussing when the car drove over another pothole. Jana smiled, she loved how Xander strived to be a perfect gentleman.

"Why did they decide to build a school out here?" Jana asked.

"Some Victorian guy thought it was good for young people to breath fresh country air," Xander replied, "That's what Ellie told me when I asked her. Though I do wonder if it was a prison or something like that before it was a school, give how remote it is."

"It could have belonged to a wolfblood," Jana mused, "It would be a perfect place for a wolfblood to live."

"I like the country," Xander replied, "But I couldn't imagine living this far from shops and things like that. I wonder how my sister copes here, she's a total shopaholic."

"Where would you want to live, in a perfect world?" Jana asked.

"At the restaurant we went to on our first date," Xander began jokingly, "I don't know I always thought it would be nice to live somewhere in America. It's a big place- I'm sure there would be somewhere that be right for me. What about you?"

"I don't know," Jana admitted, "Maybe Canada because that's where Rhydian is living now. I haven't really thought about it. I should soon because I can't really stay with my aunt and uncle forever, even if they are ok with me living with them. I guess home for me has always has been more about the people I'm living with than the location."

"Whereever we end up living, let's make sure it's not at the end of road like this one," Xander said.

Jana smiled, "I don't even think wild wolfbloods would live somewhere as remote as this."

Xander smiled, everything he heard about the wild wolfbloods made him more and more interested about their way of life. He loved the idea of living free but the idea of not having his home comforts was not something he was willing to entertain. And then there was Elloisya, he'd need to be able to look after her.

The road widened to show a small yard with several cars parked in unmarked bays. The school didn't look much like Jana had imagined a boarding school to look like. There was no formidable gigantic old building. There was a small red brick building, no bigger than a couple of houses situated a short walk from the car park and surrounding it were several small cottages- some even had thatched roofs.

"There are only thirty students here," Xander explained, "Ten in primary and twenty in secondary. My sister is one of only three students in her year."

"Wow," Jana said, "Bradlington high only had 200 students and I thought that was a small school. I guess it must be like one big family here."

"Yeah, it seems so strange, even my boarding school had 500 students," Xander began, "It is a lot like one big family here. The girls usually all stay over the summer and the school organises holidays and days out- they went to Paris last year."

"That sounds amazing!" Jana exclaimed.

"I would never be able to afford to take Ellie's on a holiday like that," Xander admitted, "It would cost too much to hire nurses and in medical insurance costs."

Jana took Xander's hand in her own, "I'm sure that once Ellie's has become a Novel Prize winning scientists or actress or something like that money will be no object."

"She wants to be a politician," Xander replied, "She's got it all mapped out- college then uni at Oxford or Cambridge, then she wants to emigrate to America and travel the world. I wish I had it all mapped out like that, I wish I knew where I was going."

"Wherever you go, I will always be there for you," Jana said.

Xander smiled, "So will I."

Xander kissed Jana, her curly hair wrapping around his fingers, her arms wrapped around his body. He had never had a girlfriend before Jana and he was amazed at how lucky he has was to have someone like her in his life.

"We probably shouldn't do that on school grounds," Jana said with a smile.

"I suppose not," Xander admitted glumly, he got out of the car and walked around to open Jana's door.

"Thank you," Jana said. They walked, holding hands, to the main building. Inside it was much like any other school reception with its posters on exams and clubs and photos of last year's students and school trips.

"I am here to see Elloisya Marten," Xander said to the receptionist, "I'm her brother, Xander and this is my girlfriend, Jana."

The receptionist gave Jana a strange look, trying to work out how Xander had ended up with someone so much younger.

The receptionist handed them their visitor passes, "You know where to go. Just inform one of the nurses if you're going anywhere."

"Thank you," Xander and Jana both said.

Xander walked towards a cottage at the back of the school grounds. Jana could hear music blaring out and recognised a song from the Taylor Swift album Shannon had made her listen too.

Xander knocked loudly on the door.

"Finally!" she heard someone yell and Xander laughed. The music stopped moments later.

The door opened to show a small girl. She had Xander's jet black hair, but whereas Xander's hair was straight, hers fell in thick waves down to her waist, her sapphire eyes we're striking as she regarded Xander and Jana with amusement.

"Jana, this is Elloisya," Xander began, introducing them, "Ellie, this is Jana."

"It's nice to finally meet you, Xander's told me so much about you," Ellie began as she gestured for them to come inside, "You'll have to excuse the mess, Laura, my housemate, and I had a party last night and neither of us felt like cleaning up this morning."

Jana could see a small kitchen littered with pizza boxes and takeaway trays, she followed Ellie into the living room which had a bookcase that was overspilling with books, and an flat screen TV in the corner. Xander helped Ellie move out of her wheelchair and sit on the sofa next to Jana.

"Thanks bro," Ellie said, "So you and Xander met at Segolia, didn't you?"

Jana nodded, "We work together as part of the security patrol team."

"Xander never tells me what he does," Ellie complained, "Says it's top secret, classified information."

"It is," Jana said quickly, being careful not to say to much, "But mostly we just walk around a lot visiting different places."

"Sounds cool," Ellie said, "I wish Xander would let me visit Segolia at sometime, Miss Sweeney has helped us so much it would be nice to see her to say thank you."

"I've told you before we'd never get permission for a trip like that," Xander said with a sigh giving the impression that he'd had the same conversation many times, "Are you ready to go to the town?"

"Nearly," Ellie said, "Jana, please could you help me with my makeup, Laura usually helps but she's gone out for lunch with her parents. I would ask Xander except he just tells me I shouldn't worry about it and he ended up making me look like a panda."

"That's a complete overexaggeration," Xander protested, "It just smudged a little."

Jana smiled, "It's ok, I'll help."

"Thank you!" Ellie's exclaimed.

Jana laughed.

"Ellie, we need to talk about the guy you're taking to the dance," Xander began cautiously.

"I'm only going with Rory," Ellie explained, "We started dating a few weeks ago after that school trip to the natural history museum. Rory's my best friend, we've known each other since I moved here all those years ago."

"You should have said it was Rory," Xander said relieved, "There was me imaging you going with one of the football team."

"I would never date a jock," Ellie said.

"What's a jock?" Jana asked.

"A sporty guy who's not too intelligent," Ellie explained, "Rory's a rocker."

Jana looked confused.

"He listens to Metallica and wears a lot of leather," Xander clarified, "I haven't seen Rory in ages, Ellie, how is he?"

"He's good," Ellie began, "His parents are visiting for the weekend and his brother has promised him that he's going to take him kayaking."

"All right for some," Xander said somewhat jealously.

"The boys school is for disabled students too," Ellie explained, "Although just looking at Rory you wouldn't think there was anything wrong with him- just a slight limp."

Ellie passed Jana her makeup bag.

"So do the boys and girls schools organise a lot of events together?" Jana asked as she rummaged through the heap of makeup products.

"Well I usually help out with the events," Ellie explained, "I'm on the committee, the guys are usually invited to our events- the schools are owned by the same family, So we like to think of ourselves as two parts of the same school rather than two separate schools. No one cares too much about the guys attending our events, except for Xander, he's old fashioned to his crinolated backbone. He actually insisted on being a chaperone at last year's summer dance."

"I don't remember you complaining when that Tomson guy was flirting with you and I told him to clear off," Xander replied.

"Yes," Ellie admitted, "But you don't need to be so overprotective. I might not have the greatest coordination but I am more than capable of throwing a cup of fruit punch at any guy who is a total jerk."

"I just worry about you," Xander began, "I can't believe you'll have finished school this time next year."

"Me neither," Ellie said, "Although I do have a surprise."

Ellie grabbed a letter from the pocket of her navy cardigan and passed it to Xander.

Xander looked at it, the colour draining from his face.

"Xander, what's wrong?" Jana asked, "I thought surprises are supposed to be good things."

"You know I've noticed something strange about you, Jana," Ellie's began,"You're not at all like most teenage girls I know. It's not a bad thing, it's just strange."

"I grew up in traveller community," Jana explained.

"Wow, That's amazing!" Elloisya exclaimed, "You'll have to tell me all about it."

"Ellie," Xander began quietly, "I know how much you hate that I live miles away and I know how much you want to live with me at the flat, but it's totally unsuitable."

"I am sure we'd be able to sort something out," Ellie protested, "It will be great."

"I am proud of you for getting the college place," Xander began, "Especially considering it's at a private day school, but how will we afford it? I only have a one bedroom flat, social services would never allow it."

"Social services is paying for my schooling and medical care," Ellie explained "It's just the flat..."

"You got into a private college, that's awesome!" Jana said.

"Thanks," Elloisya said.

"Is there not a suitable foster family or residential accommodation?" Xander asked, " You know I'd let you stay at mine if I could. By the flat's not big enough and there's no way I could afford a bigger flat, Segolia might pay me well, but there's a limit to how much they can help us."

Ellie stared at the floor glumly.

"I'm sorry," Xander said, "If there's a way I could change things I would."

"What if.." Jana thought out loud, "I don't know if it would help, or if you'd be ok with the idea just yet. But if I were to move in with you would it make things easier financially, you know two wages instead of one- you could rent a bigger flat?"

Xander looked at Jana shocked, "I think it would, social services would help with the utility bills, not that they would increase much anyway I think. I can't believe you'd do something like this for us."

"Of course, I love you," Jana replied.

Xander kissed Jana passionately, he held her in his arms, she felt so small and delicate but he knew there was a fire that burned within her, such a strong spirit, and he couldn't believe that he was so lucky to have someone as good as her in his life.

"Get a room!" Elloisya yelled, lobbing a pillow at them.

Jana and Xander laughed, before kissing again

"We need to go shopping!" Elloisya exclaimed.

"Ok,ok," Xander began, "Where should we go first, princess?"


	8. Chapter 8

Jana was exhausted. She had been shopping with Rhydian, Shannon, Tom and Maddy plenty of times in the past but none of her shopping trips had prepared her for a day out dress shopping with Ellie. Five hours after they'd arrived at the mall they were still looking at dresses and hadn't even sorted out shoes or makeup yet.

"So what do you think, the blue one or the green one?" Ellie asked.

"They both look good," Jana said honestly.

"I know," Ellie replied, "That's the problem."

"Just make a decision, please," Xander begged.

"Well which one do you think is best, Xander?" Ellie asked.

"The blue one is ok, I guess," Xander said, "I don't know."

"Yeah, the blue one is nice," Jana added.

"Ok, then I'll get the blue one," Ellie decided whilst Xander silently cheered, "I don't know why you're cheering we've still got to look for shoes and makeup."

Xander sighed loudly.

"Don't worry, bro," Ellie said, "I've already seen the pair I want."

Xander smiled.

"But I've got no idea what makeup I'm getting," Ellie added with a smile.

Xander grimaced. Jana smiled, she hadn't had much experience with sibling banter herself, having only seen Rhydian on or off for about two years. Of course they had been living together for a few years when they were young cubs, but that was a long time ago, and their relationship had changed with time and distance. Jana often wondered what it would be like to have a sister- her father had wanted Meinir to be her 'sister' but they had spent most of their time hating and fighting each other- she guessed that she and Ellie could be sisters one day, but Jana reminded herself that she'd only been with Xander a little over a month and she shouldn't be thinking so far into the future just yet.

"Can we at least get a coffee soon?" Xander asked. Xander drank coffee the way most teenagers drank Coca Cola.

Ellie rolled her eyes, "Yes, ok. I wonder how all of that caffeine doesn't make you hyperactive."

"I only drink decaf now," Xander replied.

"Well that's good," Ellie said affectionately, "But you still should cut down."

Once Ellie had paid for the dress, they headed to the restaurant and ordered their drinks and food.

"I don't know why the waitress gave me that look," Ellie complained.

"You asked for black coffee," Xander began, "Black, like your soul."

"I don't get it," Jana said in confusion.

"Have you never read the Mortal Instruments?" Ellie asked in a shocked tone.

"No," Jana admitted, "Are they good?"

"Are they…" Ellie began, "Good does not even begin to describe the Mortal Instruments. There's Jace and he is absolutely drop dead gorgeous…"

"Ellie," Xander interrupted.

"But he's not as hot as Will Herondale," Ellie continued, "That's his great, great, great, grandfather or something like that. Will's not in that series, he's in the Infernal Devices which is set before the Mortal Instruments. And then there's Jem, who is just so adorable. If I was Tessa, I totally wouldn't be able to choose between Will or Jem either…."

"Ellie," Xander repeated.

"And then there's Magnus, who is just amazing," Ellie added, "And Simon, who is Clary's best friend, and he's a complete nerd who had a crush on Clary but is now going out with Isabelle, I think, although he did lose-"

"Ellie," Xander said.

"Sorry, I get carried away sometimes," Ellie apologized.

"It's ok," Jana replied, "They sound like great books, I'll have to read them."

Ellie beamed.

"Should we get back to shopping?" Xander asked.

"I thought you needed a break," Ellie replied.

Xander rolled his eyes, it was going to a long day.

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

Xander smiled as he looked in the rear view mirror and saw Jana and Ellie fast asleep. Outside the sky was pitched black and littered with stars and thin slither of the waning moon. He knew that Dark Moon were a bad time for wolfbloods, losing their wolfy powers exhausted them, worst of all the next Dark Moon fell on a work day- he wondered if Jana would take the day off sick.

He might have only know Jana for a month and a half but it felt like they'd know each other for years. They knew each other's dark secrets and loved each other in any way that should have only been possible for fairy tale characters.

Jana's phone beeped and she woke up, looking down at it groggily.

She looked up at Xander, her cheeks flushed.

"What is it?" Xander asked quietly.

"Rhydian's coming home."


	9. Chapter 9

"Where are they?" Jana asked impatiently, almost hitting Tom and Shannon in the face with her massive 'welcome home, Rhydian and Maddy' banner that she'd made, "Do you think they can't see us?"

"I think we're pretty hard to miss," Shannon said, "They'll be here any minute."

"In all fairness they could have been blinded by the light shining off of all of that glitter," Tom added.

Jana growled, "The glitter was necessary. How else would they be able to find us?"

"Super sight, super smell," Gerwyn began, "Surprisingly enough, most wild wolfbloods can survive without glitter."

Ceri rolled her eyes, "Jana's just excited to see Rhydian and Maddy."

"I doubt she's too excited to see Maddy," Gerwyn said quietly, "She ran off with Jana's man."

"Well I have a new man in my life, don't I?" Jana protested, "And Rhydian's my brother. Besides, I'll be an aunt soon, and I can thank Maddy for that too."

Jana and her pack waited a few metres away from the barrier and watched as the passengers from the recent flight from Calgary, Canada to Newcastle flooded into the corridor in front of them.

"When can I get a hotdog?" Cadwr asked, "I'm really hungry."

Gwyn looked at him incredulously, "Did Kincaid give you something? What the hell is wrong with you? Why would you want a hotdog- it's practically cannibalism?"

"Language!" Ceri chided, hugging a sheepish Cadwr.

"Hell's not a swear word," Gerwyn began, before earning a stern look from Ceri, "Ok, ok. That was a very bad thing to say, Gwyn, a very bad thing to say."

"Meinir likes hotdogs," Cadwr said, "And so does Aran I think."

"Meinir's a human now, so it's ok for her," Gwyn said, "And Aran's always been a bit weird, hasn't he?"

"I think she liked hotdogs when she was a wolfblood," Cadwr replied, "That's what Jana told me. She told me that when she was injured a few months ago, Rhydian cooked hotdogs when they arrived and apparently Meinir wolfed down a whole tin of them."

"Jana was near death, like she'd remember that," Gwyn argued, "You are not having hotdogs and that's final."

"Gwyn!" Jana yelled, "Don't boss your brother around like that."

"Yes, alph- Jana," Gwyn said obediently.

"Where is Meinir anyway?" Ceri asked, "I thought she wanted to come meet Rhydian and Maddy."

Jana raised an eyebrow, "Did she really say that?"

"That was my reaction too," Ceri said.

Jana smiled, Meinir had definitely changed a lot since becoming a human. Whilst at first she had thought she was unnatural and a monster, it hadn't taken long for Meinir to realise that she had the same strength that she'd had in the wild pack. Although she was still having trouble adjusting to human life (nothing in the world would make her eat cooked meat), she had recently got a job on Liam's dad's farm, helping them to convert it into a paintballing centre. Apparently wolfblood or not, Meinir was always going to have a knack for inciting mindless violence.

Jana sniffed the air and beamed. She could smell them, they were still quite far away but were moving closer towards her and her friends.

"Why don't you use Eolas?" Cadwr asked.

"You can't use Eolas in man-made buildings," Jana explained.

Cadwr nodded understandingly, "The human world is so fascinating."

"No it isn't," Gwyn argued, "It's unnatural and an abomination and as soon as we're old enough we're going back to the wild and we're staying in the wild."

"But what if I want to be tame?" Cadwr protested.

"What?" Gwyn shrieked.

"Gwyn!" Jana chided, "Don't yell like that."

Gwyn sulked, muttering something about baldies and blood traitors.

"I thought Xander was coming," Tom said.

"He, he didn't…" Jana began.

"What?" Shannon asked.

"He's nervous about meeting Rhydian," Jana admitted.

"Why? He sounds like a great guy," Tom said, "At least that's the impression I got from the hundreds- no thousands- of texts and emails you've sent us about him."

"Do you remember that one about the eyes?" Shannon said with a laugh.

"What about the one about how much she wanted to-"Tom added.

"Ok, ok," Jana said blushing, "I might have gone a little too. Maybe a little, teeny bit too far. But Xander is so handsome and amazing and…'

"Jana, if I have to hear about 'Hot-pants' again I'm going to projectile vomit," Gwyn said.

Jana went bright crimson, "I never called him 'Hot-pants.'"

"You did," Tom admitted, "Quite a few times."

"Wait, is that Rhydian?" Ceri asked, looking at a blonde haired teenager standing near the barriers directly opposite them.

Jana stood on tiptoes, "Oh, yeah, it is him. Rhydian! Rhydian!"

They all waved and shouted loudly as Rhydian and Maddy approached them. They looked much the same as they had when they'd left for Canada. Rhydian had grown a couple of inches, and now was nearly as tall as Gerwyn. Maddy had grown a little too, and was now taller than Jana.

"Hi, guys," Maddy said, before they formed a group hug.

"I've missed you so much," Shannon said crying.

"I missed you too," Maddy said, "It wasn't the same without my pack."

"Yeah, hog roast night doesn't compare," Rhydian said, with a lopsided grin.

Jana looked at him through tear stained eyes, trying not to cry. She was so glad to see him.

Rhydian hugged her as she threw herself into his arms. He stroked her hair.

"I guessed you missed me a lot," Rhydian said, "I thought you'd be too busy to miss me."

Jana shook her head and smiled, "You're a fine one to talk. It sounds like you and Maddy have been very busy. Congratulations!"

"Thanks, Jana," Maddy said, "I'm sure you're looking forward to being an aunt."

"And we're looking forward to being aunt and uncle too, aren't we Shan?" Tom added.

"Yeah, definitely. Congratulations!" Shannon added.

"Maddy," Rhydian said, "This is my Dad, Gerwyn. And the cubs, Cadwr and Gwyn."

Gerwyn bowed in greeting earning a laugh from Maddy, whilst Ceri hugged Maddy as if she were her own daughter.

Cadwr smiled but looked confused, "Where's the baby?"

Jana rolled her eyes, happy that her pack was back together again.


	10. Chapter 10

"Call him!" Rhydian said for what seemed like the billionth time whilst he and Jana were setting the table.

"He's probably busy," Jana replied.

"Jana," Rhydian said, "You've already met his family. Now it's time for him to meet yours."

Jana grimaced, she didn't want Rhydian to know just how much Xander was nervous about meeting him, just how much Xander hoped that Rhydian would approved of him, "I don't know."

"Yeah, we all need to meet Hotpants," Maddy added with a laugh.

Jana rolled her eyes, they were never going to let it go.

"Please tell me you're not inviting Hotpants to our hog roast," Gwyn said sulkily, "I can't stand the idea of them two being all mushy and lovey dovey whilst I'm trying to eat."

Rhydian laughed, putting an arm around Jana's shoulders, "Come on, it'll be ok. I'll call him if you want me to."

Before Jana got an opportunity to reply Cadwr swiped her phone out of her hand and ran to other side of the room, pressing the button that allowed him to call Xander.

"Cadwr!" Jana exclaimed, "Don't you dare…"

"Is this Xander?" Cadwr asked, "Cadwr… You have to come here immediately… no, nothing serious…"

"Cadwr, please," Jana begged, trying to chase after Cadwr as the young cub darted this way and that. Suddenly, Meinir appeared at the door, yanking the phone out of Cadwr's hand.

"Meinir," Jana began, as the older girl smiled.

"Sorry, about that Xander," Meinir said in silky tone, "We would just love it if you could join us for hog roast night… That's great… Yes, and I almost forgot to mention, Jana also has some other activities planned for you two later on tonight."

Jana swore whilst Gerwyn tried not to laugh, earning a slap from Ceri.

"No she doesn't," Cadwr said confused.

"Yes, that's what I assume she meant," Meinir said, "Well I'm sure she'll be happy to discuss what she's got planned once you arrive… We'll see you soon. Take care. Bye. Now, see Jana, it was quite easy, wasn't it?"

Jana was bright red with fury, tears of rage shining in her eyes, "Meinir, how could you?"

Rhydian shook his head at Meinir, before hugging Jana to his side, "That was too far. Even for you."

Meinir rolled her eyes, "You'll probably thank me later."

"He's going to think…" Jana began, her voice betraying that she was about to cry, "I just wanted every to be perfect."

"It still will be," Rhydian reassured her.

"You said he has a sister, right?" Tom asked, "Sisters play pranks like that all time. He probably won't even make a big deal about it."

"But what if he does?" Jana asked in a melodramatic tone.

"If he tries anything," Rhydian began, "I'll bury him in the garden."

"Please don't," Jana replied, "He wouldn't hurt me in any way."

"That's good to know," Rhydian said.

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

Xander stared at the horizon as he drove whilst the rain fell heavily on the window screen. It seemed no matter where you went in England, you could always be sure that there would be plentiful rain.

He couldn't believe that he'd been invited to hog roast night, well admittedly Ceri had been nagging him to come over for dinner quite often. He knew why Jana hadn't invited him, she appreciated that he was nervous about meeting all of them, that he wasn't quite sure what to do in family situations like that. It had just been him and Ellie for so long now- and he was used to spending his nights watching TV, eating ready meals and reading, trying not pay attention to the quietness that dominated the flat. Of course, as soon as he and Jana found their own little place, they'd be moving in together and it would no longer be like that. He couldn't believe how quickly things were going in their relationship.

That's why he wondered, however unlikely, if Meinir's comment about Jana's other 'activities' that she had planned was more than just a joke. He didn't know quite what to say to her, he didn't want to just laugh it off in case there was anything serious about the comment, but he didn't want to make too much of a big deal about it either. He loved Jana, but she was still very young, he didn't want to rush things. And then there was her brother of course, he definitely wouldn't let anything like that happen. Xander thought about what he would do to any guy that even looked at his sister in that way, he knew that Rhydian would react in exactly the same way- well maybe he wouldn't dispose of the body in a river perhaps.

Xander pulled into the driveway and ran towards the door, trying not to get drenched in the torrential rain, but ultimately failing.

He knocked on the door and seconds later he heard a shout and then Jana opened it. He knew that she'd been crying- he could tell from the way that her eyes were red- and pulled her into his arms, placing a kiss of her head.

"You're drenched," Jana said, taking comfort from being Xander's arms.

Gwyn made a retching noise, "Have a room!"

"She means get a room," Tom explained, "Gwyn why don't you go help Ceri, yeah?"

The cub stomped her foot angrily before running off.

"Hi, I'm Tom, Shannon's boyfriend," Tom said, shaking Xander's hand, "Glad you could make it. We've been hoping to meet you for ages."

"I meant to come over sooner," Xander began, "But work's been crazy, getting some new members going our security team next week. Should be exciting."

"I'm not sure Jana will be too happy about that," Gerwyn said, "I'm glad you could join us. We've heard so much about you."

"Gerwyn," Ceri said.

"What I didn't do anything," Gerwyn replied, before reaching to grab a slice of ham.

"Hi, I'm Rhydian, Jana's brother," Rhydian said introducing himself, "And this is Maddy, my fiancé, my Mum and Dad- who you've already met, Shannon- who you know from work, Gwyn and Cadwr- the cubs. And Meinir is somewhere, she'll be here soon."

"Already here," Meinir said as she walked down the stairs, "It's so good to meet you Hotpants- sorry, I mean Xander."

Xander gave Jana a questioning amused look, "It's nice to meet you too."

Meinir smiled before walking into the kitchen, "Try to behave," she whispered to Jana.

"Xander," Jana began, "The phone call earlier, I'm so sorry."

"It's ok," Xander said, cupping Jana's cheek his hand, "Really it's ok. Meinir's just one of the awful older sister type girls."

"You could say that," Jana said, "I feel so embarrassed."

"Ellie's played some pretty bad pranks on me before," Xander said, smiling, "Sisters are just like that. Although I have to admit that I was expecting something a little more inventive than Hotpants."

Jana groaned and Xander laughed.

"It's sweet," Xander said, hugging Jana, "Most couples have pet names, my little angel."

"Little angel," Jana said, raising an eyebrow, "I guess pet names aren't really our forte."

"Bit harsh," Xander said, "It could have been little cupcake."

"Cupcake?" Jana said incredulously, "I guess little angel is ok, even if that makes me sound like a toddler."

"I'm happy with Hotpants," Xander said.

"That's good," Jana said before kissing Xander.

Rhydian cleared his throat, "Dinner is ready."


	11. Chapter 11

Xander watched in surprised shock as the cubs each demolished their fourth chicken drumstick. He knew full well that wolfbloods had a large appetite but he was still surprised.

"So, how long have you been working at Segolia?" Ceri asked.

"Three years," Xander answered, "I started there as soon as I left school."

"Xander went to the same school as Rhydian," Jana added, "The one in Cornwall."

Ceri looked surprised, "Did you know Rhydian?"

Xander nodded, "He was in my mentor group. The older students were each given three primary school students to mentor."

"I bet Rhydian was a nightmare," Gerwyn said.

"No, actually he was completely fine," Xander replied.

"Yeah, Dad," Rhydian began, "I'm not that much of a nightmare."

Maddy laughed, "I'm not sure my parents would agree."

"I thought they would have calmed down by now," Jana said, "I thought they would be pleased to be grandparents."

"They are," Rhydian said, "They just would have preferred to be grandparents in ten years' time. They weren't too bad though."

"I suppose if you consider putting locks on our bedroom doors, not too bad," Maddy added.

"It didn't really stop us though, did it?" Rhydian replied with a cheeky grin.

"Yeesh," Gwyn complained, "I thought Hotpants and Jana were going to be all lovey dovey but you two are just as bad."

"Why would they put locks on your bedroom doors?" Cadwr asked confused.

"To stop them raiding the fridge at night," Tom said hurriedly, "You know what you wolfbloods are like."

Cadwr shook his head, "I still don't get it."

"You will when you're older," Gwyn said.

"So have you started thinking about names?" Jana asked.

"It's a bit too soon," Rhydian said, "Although knowing you, you've probably already made me a list."

Jana nodded, before passing a piece of paper towards Rhydian, "They're all respectable wolfblood names and most of them are Welsh or Gaelic."

"That's great, sis," Rhydian said in amused tone.

"Why are there more girls names than boys names?" Maddy asked.

"We wildies have ways of finding out things," Jana said smugly.

"Don't worry Maddy," Rhydian said, "The pack's divination methods are rarely accurate. Apparently I was supposed to be a girl and a twin. Jana was supposed to be born a month later than she was and she was supposed to have jet black hair."

"You have to admit the pack astrologers are sometimes right," Gerwyn said, "They said Aran and Meinir would be ambitious but lack morals."

Meinir growled, feeling a little ridiculous considering that she was no longer a wolfblood.

"I'm sure whatever happens I'll be surprised," Maddy concluded.

"Are you going to be in Stoneybridge when the baby is born?" Shannon asked.

"Hopefully," Maddy said, "We can only stay for a couple of months now, but I'm hoping that Mum and Dad might be willing to join us next time- they're busy looking for a house a little bit closer to civilisation."

"I swear the wild pack lived closer to a supermarket than your parents do," Rhydian said.

"But Snowdonia versus Alberta," Maddy argued, "There's not much of a competition, is there?"

"I guess not," Rhydian said, "Although Snowdonia is probably the best place in Britain for wolfbloods to live."

"It definitely is," Jana agreed, "I can't believe Dacia lives in the city."

"Yeah, even I'd go crazy if I had to live in Newcastle," Xander said, "Although, living in New York might be fun."

"What is New York?" Ceri asked.

"The Big Apple," Tom replied, "It's in America."

"So you can eat New York then?" Cadwr asked.

"No, no," Shannon clarified, "It's a nickname."

"What's a nickname?" Gwyn asked confused.

"It's a joke name," Jana explained, "Like a name you give to someone or something that describes that person or thing in a humorous way."

"So, like when we call Aran the rabbit-?" Cadwr asked.

"Yeah, sort of I guess," Jana interrupted hurriedly, "May, do you know when Aran is coming back?"

Meinir shrugged, "No idea. I'd imagine it'll be soon. And a lot sooner if his beloved alpha keeps on calling me May."

"Aran's your brother, isn't he?" Xander asked.

"Yes, Hotpants, he is," Meinir replied.

"It so strange," Maddy said, "This last time I saw Aran he was trying to help Alric kill Rhydian."

"Who's Alric?" Xander asked.

"Jana's father," Rhydian explained, "It was all a big misunderstanding. He's not like that anymore."

"He's still a d-" Jana began.

"Jana!" Ceri exclaimed, "You should not better than to use that language in front of the cubs!"

"Oh come on," Gerwyn said, "She is right you know."

"Whatever our opinions on her father might be we don't need to use that kind of language," Ceri replied sternly.

"Ok, my father is blasphemous idiot," Jana replied angrily, "Is that right use of language?"

"Jana!" Rhydian said shocked. Jana was never usually rude to Ceri.

"Sorry," Jana said quietly, "I need a moment."

"Ok," Ceri said worriedly.

"I wonder who trod on her tail," Meinir pondered.

"She's been grumpy for a while," Cadwr said, "Ever since that letter arrived."

"I should probably talk to her," Rhydian and Xander said simultaneously.

"She'll be back soon," Ceri said.

"Did Jana mention anything about the letter?" Tom asked.

Cadwr shook his head, "When I asked her about it she told me to leave her alone."

"It's not like Jana," Rhydian said confused.

"Has anything strange happened?" Maddy asked, "Like a wildies near our territory or anything like that?"

Rhydian shook his head.

"Yes," Xander said, "Well sort of. We had a run with a wild wolfblood a few weeks ago."

"You mean that day when Jana sprained her wrist?" Shannon asked.

Rhydian winced, it seemed that Jana was always getting injured and that he was never there to keep her out of harm's way. Maddy put a hand on his arm in understanding.

Xander nodded, "Yes. There was a large brown wolf that approached us, but we dealt with it."

Rhydian's jaw clenched when Xander used the word 'approached' and he could tell that Xander wasn't telling the whole truth.

"What happened?" Shannon asked, "Was it one of the wild pack?"

"Couldn't have been," Meinir answered, "They're back home in Wales now."

"Maybe they'd reached a decision but didn't know where to find you?" Ceri suggested.

"Seems unlikely, and Aran would have been the one sent to Stoneybridge," Gerwyn answered, "No it sounds like a lone wolf."

"What happened?" Rhydian asked, "Something tells me the wolf didn't just approach you."

"Rhydian," Shannon said, "Don't be like that."

"I'm sorry about not telling the whole truth earlier," Xander began, "I just want you to know that I love Jana a lot and I'd never let anybody or anything hurt her. I'd happily lay down my life for her."

"I think I'm going to vomit," Gwyn interrupted.

"The wolf attacked us," Xander continued, "Jana couldn't even detect the wild wolfblood using Eolas, he was shielding his scent. Jana and I ran and climbed a tree, but the wolf wasn't backing down, so Jana tried to challenge him. She sprained her wrist when she jumped. I tried to help, I tried to fire a tranquiliser dart at the wild wolfblood but it hit Jana instead, eventually I hit the wild wolfblood, but I don't know where it went, I was just focused on Jana at that point."

Rhydian nodded in understanding, "You did what you could. It wasn't your fault."

Xander smiled, "Thank you."

"I wonder who this wild wolfblood is," Gerwyn said, "I assume he hasn't been back since?"

"No," Xander said, "Miss Sweeney's hiring more people for our security team to help with the search."

"That's only because she thinks all you and Jana do is eat and kiss all day," Gerwyn said.

Well with the lack of activity recently, Xander thought, that is pretty much all we do.

"I should probably go talk to her," Xander said.

"Ok," Rhydian said, "Tell her I'll be here if she needs me."

Xander nodded before walking up the stairs.

"Jana," he said softly, not knowing which room she was in.

He heard crying from behind a closed door and knocked on it, feeling a pang of pain in his chest.

He opened the door, hearing the squeak of the hinges, and saw Jana sitting on the bed, her hair messy and her eyes red, a worn and creased piece of paper in her hands.

"Jana," he said pulling her into his arms, as she sobbed. He could see where he tears had made the ink on the paper run.

_Jana,_

_I am Pedr's father. I have come to seek justice._

_Your mother's crimes have severely damaged my pack and I have come to take what is rightly mine._

_If you stand in my way, there will be bloodshed._

_You will give me your territory or I will rip your pack apart- starting with that precious cowarer boyfriend of yours._

_Your whole family is abomination and a disgrace to wolfbloods everywhere._

_Heed my warning._

_Elgar_


	12. Chapter 12

"What do we do?" Rhydian asked exasperated as he looked down at the letter in his hand.

"What can we do?" Xander replied, "It doesn't like this Elgar guy is willing to compromise."

"I don't understand," Rhydian said looking down at his sleeping sister, "Why didn't Jana say something earlier?"

"Maybe she didn't want to ruin the welcome back party," Xander suggested, "She's been excited about you coming back for ages."

"Maybe," Rhydian pondered, "Or she might have been waiting for me to come back, so that I could help."

"She has me," Xander replied, "I'll always protect her."

"I know, that and she knows that too," Rhydian answered, "But Jana and I, we're siblings. We spent the first three years of our lives living with each 24/7, when we were forced to go our separate ways it almost destroyed her. I lived with the pack for a while about a year ago, Jana and I had been separated for over a decade- we didn't really know how to act around each other, I barely remembered her but she remember everything. She wanted things to go back to the way they were when we were toddlers, but of course we'd both changed a lot since then. I didn't really know what to say or do. Her father sent her to Stoneybridge and it was assumed that she was my responsibility. It took a while for Maddy to accept her as member of the pack, and Maddy's parents weren't very warm towards her either. I was the only one she could really truthfully rely on at that time. Things have changed now, and Jana does know that you protect her and love her but she's still going to look to me to protect her. And I'm her big brother, of course it's my job to protect her."

"I understand," Xander said, "It's the same for me with Ellie. I'm glad Jana has you."

"You know that comment you made earlier about New York," Rhydian said, "This might sound crazy considering that you and Jana have only been together for a month or so but I know you're going to move in together soon. I was just wondering, before Jana met you she kept on bugging me about finding a way for her to move to Canada, would you ever consider moving to America?"

Xander let out a sigh, "I love Jana, and yes in an ideal world, I'd move to America with Jana, if that's what she wanted. But I can't abandon Ellie."

"I understand, I shouldn't have really asked, it was a stupid question," Rhydian said.

"No it's ok," Xander replied, "It was a great suggestion. It would have made everyone happy. Ellie would love America, especially New York. One of her favourite book series is set there and it's her dream to travel there one day and meet the author. It's just not feasible."

"Why not?" Rhydian asked, "I know it's a bit cheeky but I'm sure that Miss Sweeney would probably arrange something for you. The largest Segolia office is in New York and supposedly they have the best security team in the whole corporation."

"It's not money or anything like that," Xander said, "Ellie, she's disabled, she can't walk. She's looked after by the state at the moment, but she'll be moving up here once she finishes school and Jana and I have found our own place. I guess I'll have up to come up with a good excuse soon for why she can't visit me at work. She thinks I'm James Bond Jr or something like that."

Rhydian laughed, "Does she not know, about the wolfbloods?"

"No, of course not," Xander said, "I know I could trust her to keep the secret but she's only fifteen, well nearly sixteen, she's too young to be getting swept up in all of this. I want her to lead as normal a life as possible."

"Your dating an ex-wild wolfblood," Rhydian said, "I think your sister ought to know. Jana and you seem to be pretty serious about each other, and if she's going to be living with you she'll soon start asking why Jana disappear every full moon and why she hardly stays awake on a dark moon."

"Your right, I should have anticipated that," Xander said, "But how do I tell her? What do I say? I can't be all like 'Hey, how are you? By the way, my girlfriend is essentially a werewolf, except she was never bitten, she was born that way. Oh and by the way, don't be tempted to play a game of fetch with her on a full moon because she finds it insulting'.

Rhydian laughed, "I'm surprised Jana didn't eat you. She must really love you. Look, if you can't tell Ellie yourself then maybe we could tell her."

"I don't know what to do," Xander admitted, "Ellie and Jana are good friends, I wouldn't want to ruin their friends by dropping a bombshell like this. But I guess there's no way around it, Ellie's going to figure it all out some day. She's so perceptive, she's already noticed that Jana isn't much like other girls her age."

"Why don't you invite her over?" Rhydian suggested, "Jana and Shannon are organising a movie night on dark moon day this week. It would be good to tell her then."

"Yeah that sounds good," Xander said, "I could easily get time off work to go and pick her up, say I'm looking after Jana. I know dark moons can be difficult for wolfbloods."

"They're not that bad," Rhydian replied, "Although Jana is affected a bit worse than most. I know that Segolia allows wolfbloods to have the dark moon off, I'm sure nobody would care too much if you took the day of too. I'm sure they'd almost expect you to."

"It sounds like a plan," Xander agreed, smiling as Jana slept, the wolf toy clutched tight to her chest, "You know she's going to have to replace that soon, it's practically flat."

Rhydian smiled, "I tried to look for a replacement, but they don't make them anymore. I even begged the manufacturers but of course they didn't reply. I'm not even sure Jana would want a new one, she's had it since we were three, and it was the only thing she had to remember me by for all those years. I'm not kidding when I say that she can't sleep without it. Meinir and Aran decided to take the toy away from her for a laugh and she literally stayed up for two days straight trying to find out where they'd hidden it."

Jana whimpered and her forehead creased, she clutched the wolf toy closer to her chest.

"It's ok," Xander said stroking her hair, "We're here, its ok."

"It's not a great sign," Rhydian said, "Jana only gets nightmares when she's upset or afraid."

"She kept it all bottled up for so long," Xander said, "I thought she'd be feeling better now."

"It's not just Elgar," Rhydian began, "Wild wolfbloods don't deal with emotions in the same way that tames and human beings do. We understand things like grief and stress, to them, that's just weakness. They don't know how to accept, let alone deal with emotional problems. Jana's nightmares started after she got shot, I didn't realise what was going on until she attacked a boy a school for making a joke about putting someone's dog down. Jana's probably got post-traumatic stress disorder, in fact I'd be surprised if she didn't. But she's putting on brave face, because that's how she was raised up- it's only those closest to her that know the truth."

"Wait she was shot?" Xander said shocked, "And…nearly died?"

Rhydian nodded as Jana tossed and turned, "She doesn't like to talk about it. There's a lot of stuff that's happened in her life that she doesn't like to talk about."

"Like her what happened to her mum and her brother," Xander said.

Rhydian nodded, "I'm glad my mum is looking after her. At least she has a mother in her life again now."

"What other stuff happen to her?" Xander asked, "If you don't mind me asking. I just don't want to say anything stupid and upset her."

Rhydian began from the beginning, telling Xander about the time that Jana and him had spent as cubs in the wild pack, and about the day when they were both taken into care, then the great escape which ended so tragically and the years of them both feeling completely lost. He told Xander about everything that had happened since Jana had come to Stoneybridge the first time.

Xander let out a breath, trying to hold back tears, "How can anyone survive all that and still be so strong?"

"It's just Jana, she's always been strong," Rhydian said, "And you make her stronger."

"We both do," Xander said.

Jana let out a cry and the moonlight shining through the window showed that tears were running down her cheeks. In her fear she let go of the wolf toy and it fell onto the floor. She woke up immediately, screaming and crying and flung herself into Rhydian's arms.

Rhydian stroked her hair as Xander retrieved the toy. The stitching had almost come undone in several places and something told Xander that most of the damage had taken place in the past few weeks.

"I thought you were dead," Jana said sobbing, "I saw Elgar kill you and then… there was a gun and…"

"I'm right here," Rhydian said, "We'll always be here for you."

"It's all my fault," Jana said, "It's all my fault that Elgar's threatening us."

"What do you mean?" Xander said confused.

"I told Mum that I really wanted a little brother or sister, "Jana began, "And then Pedr was born and the truth came out that my mother had cheated on my father, with Elgar. If I hadn't said anything then nothing would happened, I'd have had my mum and my brother in my life and everyone would have been safe and happy."

"Don't blame yourself for any of that, Jana," Xander said, struggling to hold back tears, "You aren't responsible for your mother or Elgar's actions."

"Jana," Rhydian said exasperated, "You can't think like that. You can't keep on blaming yourself, you'll only end up getting more and more hurt."

"You were going to go after Elgar yourself, weren't you?" Xander asked, "That's why you didn't tell anyone."

Jana nodded, "It's my fault. I've got to solve it."

"No, we're doing this together," Rhydian objected, "I'm not going to let you do this."

"Can't you see?" Jana exploded, "If I do this alone, I'll keep everyone safe. It might not be enough to bring my mother and brother back but at least no one else will have to suffer because of me."

"I'm not letting you do this," Rhydian repeated, "And no is, or ever, had suffered because of you."

"Really?" Jana said moodily, "You nearly got excluded because of me, and no doubt probably were excluded from your other schools because you tried to run away to find me. You've been in trouble with Miss Vaughan hundreds of times because you've had to get me out of trouble. I made this difficult between you and Maddy when I first came to Stoneybridge, and then I lashed out at Shannon about the whole laptop business. So tell me no one has suffered because of me? Can you honestly say that?"

Jana was breathing heavily, her eyes glowing yellow and the veins on her hands and neck were dark black. She was still crying as Xander reached out to put an arm around her.

"You changed my life Jana," Xander said, "You're amazing and beautiful and intelligent and a billion and one other great things. You're not a horrible person, Jana, you're not responsible for the actions of other and you can't punish yourself by handing yourself over to Elgar, we won't let you."

"I won't let him destroy our pack," Jana replied.

"We're not going to let him destroy you either," Rhydian said, "Why didn't you tell me before that this was what you were thinking and feeling? You're not in wild pack anymore, no one is going to judge you for feeling the way that you do."

"If I talk about it, it feels like I have to live it all again," Jana admitted, "But then I see it in my nightmares and I just want it to stop but I don't know how to."

"Getting killed by Elgar isn't going to make anything better," Xander said, "There are people who you can talk to, you can talk to us, or there are people at Segolia who would know what to do."

Jana shook her, "No, never."

"Why not?" Rhydian asked.

"They'd see me as weak," Jana said, "They'd fire me, wouldn't they?"

"No, Jana," Xander replied, hugging Jana, "They wouldn't do that, they would help you."

"Just think about it," Rhydian said, kissing his sister on the forehead, before passing the wolf toy back to her, "Try to get some sleep."

"Good night, Jana," Xander said, kissing her, "I love you."

"Love you, munchkin," Rhydian said, ruffling her hair.

They were almost at the door when Jana let out a cry.

"Stay, please," Jana whispered.

Xander and Rhydian smiled in understand as Rhydian pulled the arm chair closer to the bed and Xander sat on the edge of the bed. Jana hugged the wolf toy under one arm, whilst holding Rhydian and Xander's hand in hers.

"Good night," she mumbled before slipping into a peaceful sleep.


	13. Chapter 13

Xander smiled as he walked through the door to see Jana, Rhydian and Maddy curled up on the sofa. He tried to tiptoe towards them but the floorboards creaked and Maddy began to wake up.

"Xander?" she asked groggily, "I thought you were going to pick up your sister? Shannon said movie night is still on, and we're doing you-know-what tomorrow."

"That sounds cool," Xander replied, "Jana said she wanted to come with me. Do you think I should wake her up?"

"Hello, Hotpants," Meinir said suddenly appearing at the bottom of the stairs, "Don't worry about, Jana, I know how to wake her up."

"Meinir, I don't think-" Xander began, put was unable to stop Meinir as she strolled across the room grabbing the wolf toy out of Jana's hand and threw it across the room. Jana woke up startled and full alert despite it being a dark moon day.

"Where is it, Meinir? Gods above, as soon as I'm able to transform back into a wolf again I'm going to rip your head off!" Jana shrieked.

"Jana, seriously," Rhydian said groggily, yawning, "Can you be a little quieter?"

"No, Meinir's being a b-" Jana began before spotting the toy at the end of the room, "Oh, no."

The wolf toy had fallen apart when Meinir had thrown it across the room and now was littered in several pieces across the kitchen floor.

"Jana, I'm sorry, I was just mucking about-," Meinir replied defensively.

"I hate you!" Jana said, punching and kicking at Meinir.

Xander tried to restrain Jana but she was too strong for him to stop, it wasn't until Rhydian intervened that they were both able to stop her attacking Meinir.

"It's ok, we'll fix it," Rhydian said, as Jana cried loudly, "Come here."

Rhydian hugged Jana, whilst Xander and Maddy retrieved the parts of the toy from the kitchen.

"We'll easily be able to repair it Jana," Maddy reassured her friend, "Mum and Dad left a big old sowing box upstairs. It will be as good as new once we've fixed it."

Jana smiled at Maddy and Rhydian, "Thank you."

"We'll have fixed it by the time you get home," Rhydian promised her.

Jana hugged him and Maddy, "I love you guys."

"Love you too, munchkin," Rhydian said.

Xander looked at Meinir who stood in the corner with a pained expression on her face. He didn't understand, he knew what sisters could be like, but Meinir had gone way too far. It was almost like Meinir had a vendetta against Jana and from what he could gather Meinir had been bullying Jana ever since she was born. He was pretty sure that Rhydian had mentioned that when Jana had the morwal a few months ago it was because she believed Meinir had stolen her pack. He wanted to be able to feel sorry Meinir, she looked so miserable, but Jana was his girlfriend, he loved her and her happiness was beyond important to him.

"Meinir," Xander said approaching her, "We need to talk about this. Things have gone too far."

"Don't worry about giving me the lecture," Meinir said sulkily, "I'll know doubt get it from Rhydian and Jana later on."

"I'm not going to lecture you," Xander promised, "I just want to know, why? Why have you bullied Jana for such a long time?"

"You wouldn't understand," Meinir said, "You're a cowarer. You don't know anything about a wild wolfblood's life."

"I'm dating Jana so I think I understand more about wild wolfbloods that the average human," Xander said, "Just tell me why."

"I was ten when Jana was born," Meinir began, "Before she was born I was Alric's successor. Alric is Jana's father. She born only a few days before I was about to undergo the Rite of Twaltan. The rite that would have made me Alric's heir."

"But wait," Xander said confused, "Surely Alric would have known that Jana was going to be born and called it off months in advance."

"No one expected Jana to survive," Meinir explained, "We all knew there was something wrong before she was born- she was too small. She was born prematurely and was so tiny, I won't tell you what the pack leaders said, and of course Alric and Arianne being sentimental wouldn't have ever abandoned Jana. They pampered her, thinking if they spoilt her then she would be as strong as any other child her age. But as she you can see, she's still tiny, still gets easily injured."

"So why not protect her?" Xander asked, "Surely if she's already got a lot to worry about you shouldn't be adding any more to it."

Meinir smiled, "Being weak makes your friends and family weak, makes your pack weak. Imagine living for sixteen years being subservient to a weak cub just because she has noble blood. I didn't trust her to rule the pack without ruining everything and I just knew that I could have been a much better leader had I been given the chance."

"But she didn't ruin anything, she was a great leader," Xander said, "So why are you still bulling her now?"

"Because I'm a human," Meinir explained, "Because if she hadn't trusted Segolia I would have still been living in the wild with my brother rather than cooped up in some house in the middle of nowhere waiting for the pack to decide my fate."

"What happened to you was Kincaid's fault, not Jana's," Xander said, "You need to remember that. And please, just stop bullying Jana, it isn't going to make you feel any better."

"You need to leave Meinir," Jana said suddenly, "That will make all of us feel better."

"Jana, no, you can't do that," Xander protested, "Where would Meinir go?"

"Back to wild pack," Jana suggested, "I don't really care I just don't want anywhere around here."

"You're not my alpha, Jana," Meinir said, "You can't tell me what to do."

"This isn't your house," Jana said, "Leave!"

"No, it's my house, Jana," Maddy said, "And I say that Meinir can stay."

"What?!" Jana exploded, before storming off towards the door and grabbing her boots.

"Where are you going?" Xander asked.

"I just need to get out of here," Jana said in a chocked voice as she pulled her boots on.

Xander hugged her, "I understand. Maybe we should talk about this later. Let everything cool down."

Jana smiled, "Ok."

"We'll see you later," Xander said.

"Everything will be ok," Rhydian reassured Jana, before hugging her, "Have a safe journey."

"See you soon," Maddy said.

"Bye," Jana replied.

BREAK-BREAK-BREAK-BREAK-BREAK-BREAK-BREAK-BREAK-BREAK-BREAK-BREAK

Gerwyn yawned, "Explain to me again how there isn't a subsection in the European convention of human rights that classes being forced to switch to decaf as a form of torture."

Rhydian laughed, "Dad, it isn't that bad. It's hardly torture."

"You just hope your mother doesn't find out how much cola you've drunk already," Gerwyn said, "Only one of us has to suffer. I'll be martyr for wolfbloods everywhere."

Maddy laughed, "I think it's good that Shannon is trying to get us all to live more healthily. It will be good for the baby, it will be easier if she doesn't grow up expecting raw meat and coffee at every meal."

"What's wrong with raw meat and coffee?" Gwyn asked, pulling at her tie, "Gods this uniform is awful!"

"Nothing," Maddy answered, "But it's hardly healthy is it?"

"I'm glad Gwyn's backing me up on this," Gerwyn said, "We're the last hope of wolfblood kind."

"If you're the last hope of wolfblood kind, Gerwyn, then I think we should all be worried," Ceri said appearing with a basket full of laundry which she passed to Gerwyn.

"What am I supposed to do with this?" Gerwyn asked incredulously.

"I don't know," Ceri said sarcastically, "Put it in the washing machine. I imagine after living for thirteen years in the human world you might know by now how to use one."

"But washing is a woman's job," Gerwyn protested, "Ok, Maddy, Ceri, Gwyn- I meant it as a joke- please don't kill me, I'm sorry."

"If washing is a woman's job," Ceri began, "Then how did you cope for over a decade."

"Local dry cleaning service," Gerwyn explained, "You know how much I hate housework."

Cadwr bounced down the stairs, beaming, "Today is going to be the best day of my life."

Gwyn rolled her eyes, "I can't believe we're actually going to school, to the same school. If anyone asks we aren't related, got it."

"But we are related," Cadwr said confused, "Are you ashamed of me or something?"

"Look, bro," Gwyn said, "I just don't want you embarrassing me, ok. You're going to just be an itsy bitsy year seven and I'm going to be the next alpha of the school."

"It doesn't work like that," Rhydian said, "Schools aren't like that, you've got to try to fit in. Don't mention about any wolf stuff and don't ask for raw meat."

"Got it," Cadwr said excitedly.

"I can't wait to get today over and done with," Gwyn said miserably, as the ping of a bicycle bell sounded.

"That'll be Mr Jeffries," Maddy said, "I still can't believe he knows about us."

"Have a good day," Ceri said the cubs."

"We will," Cadwr said as he hurried to the door.

"I'll try to," Gwyn added sulkily, "Following him."

"Goodbye," Rhydian, Maddy and Gerwyn said.

"Ten pound says Gwyn pulls a sickie before lunch," Gerwyn said.

"Five pound says before ten," Rhydian added with a smile.

"Come on, we need to get this fixed," Maddy nagged Rhydian.

"Why what happened?" Ceri asked concerned, "Is that Jana's wolf toy?"

"Yeah," Rhydian replied, "Meinir happened."

Ceri sighed, "She needs to stop this."

"I don't think she's going to any time soon," Rhydian added.

"Then what can we do?" Ceri asked, "We can't send her back to the wild pack, we haven't heard anything from Aran yet, it might not be safe for her to return."

"I'm not having her hurting Jana like that again," Rhydian said, "She went too far."

Maddy put a hand of Rhydian's arm reassuringly, "Don't worry about Jana, she's got Xander now."

"I can't help it, after Elgar's threat…," Rhydian began, "She's my little sister."

"You need to be safe too," Maddy said, "I don't want to lose you."

"You're not going to lose me, Maddy," Rhydian said, "You'll be stuck with me forever."

Maddy kissed Rhydian, "I like the sound of that."


	14. Chapter 14

"Xander!" Ellie exclaimed in surprise as she closed the door of the classroom to see her brother and his girlfriend waiting in the corridor outside, "What on earth are you doing here?"

"Surprise visit," Xander said, "I'll explain on the way."

"Where are we going?" Ellie asked in confusion.

"Where you've always wanted to go," Xander replied, "We're taking you to Stoneybridge."

"What?" Ellie said, "How did you manage that? I thought you said we'd never get clearance."

"I found a way around it," Xander said, "I'll explain once we're in the car."

"Ok," Ellie replied.

Fifteen minutes later they were on the main road leading out of the town.

"Explain," Ellie said without preamble.

"You remember our dearly beloved great-uncle Terence," Xander began.

"The one with the peg leg and the glass eye?" Ellie said, "The one who tried to give your whiskey on your sixth birthday?"

"Yeah, that one," Xander replied, "Well I told the school that our poor beloved great-uncle Terry met with an unfortunate end and that we need to travel to Scotland to pay our respects to him."

"But he died two years ago," Ellie said, "And Mum and Dad stopped speaking to him after the BBQ."

"What happened at the BBQ?" Jana asked.

"Trust me, you don't want to know," Xander replied.

"So what are we actually doing?" Ellie asked, "You said we're going to Stoneybridge, are we going to visit Segolia?"

Xander nodded, "Tomorrow. Tonight we're having a movie night at Jana's. You'll get to meet Jana's family- although word of advice, avoid Meinir she bites."

Jana stifled a laugh, pretending instead to have a coughing fit.

"Jana, are you ok?" Ellie asked concerned.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Jana replied, "Thanks."

"You don't seem well Jana," Ellie added, "You look exhausted."

"Oh, it's nothing," Jana said nonchalantly, "I had food poisoning a few days ago."

Xander smiled, 'food poisoning' seemed to wolfblood standard reply.

"Well I hope you feel better soon," Ellie said with a smile.

"I think we should pull over soon," Xander said, "I need to look at the map."

"You mean you need to get coffee," Ellie began.

"No, I don't usually drive this route back to Stoneybridge," Xander said, as he pulled over, "I couldn't go the usually way because it was flooded. I can't wait until you go to college and I don't have to drive three hours to visit you."

"Well I guess that's why we've that's why we've stopped outside a Starbucks," Ellie said quietly.

Xander rolled his eyes, "Ok, ok. Yes, I'm getting a coffee."

"Can you get me a pumpkin spice latte, please?" Ellie added.

"I can't believe that's actually a thing," Xander said shaking his head, "Jana do you want anything?"

"No, I'm ok for now, thanks," Jana said.

"Be back in five," Xander said as he walked in to the shop.

"Xander seems tired too," Ellie mused, "You know you two can drop the act. It's obvious why you two are so tired today. I have to admit you two do move quite fast in your relationship, moving in together after nothing each over only a few weeks and everything. I should be so surprised."

"Surprised about what?" Jana asked confused.

"Well you know," Ellie said, gesturing wildly hoping that Jana would understand.

Jana shook her head, "I don't understand."

"How can you not understand what I mean?" Ellie said exasperated, "You know what. You and Xander, you've obviously done you know what, haven't you?"

Jana went bright red, "Ellie…"

"Oh, my god, Jana," Ellie said, "I knew it. I knew it. I bet I'll be an auntie soon. Imagine me, an auntie before I'm twenty, god, I feel old already."

"Ellie, I…" Jana said, trying to hide her embarrassment.

"Jana, it's nothing to be ashamed about," Ellie said reassuringly, "It's normal in relationships."

"You don't mean, you and Rory?" Jana said in shock.

"No, no, gosh, I wouldn't put Rory's life in danger like that," Ellie said, "He's my best friend, I don't want Xander to kill him. But it is a bit hypocritical of him, don't you think, him and you, you know and then he won't let me… well, you can see why it's hypocritical?"

"Ellie…" Jana started.

"I'm glad you understand," Ellie said, putting an hand on Jana's arm, "Lauren just says I'm too young to be worrying about things like that."

Xander appeared knocking on Ellie's window, which she rolled down.

"One overpriced, overly convoluted cup of coffee for the madam," Xander said, passing the cup to her.

"Thank you, kind sir," Ellie said.

"Ok, ok," Xander said as he climbed in the driver seat, "Jane Austen moment over."

"Jana and I had an interesting conversation," Ellie said suddenly.

Jana turned bright red and tried to hide behind her hair.

"That sounds fascinating," Xander said as he looked at Jana in the rear view mirror, he could guess what the conversation had been about.

"Well I have to say I was surprised," Ellie said, "Especially as Jana is so young."

"I'm sorry I'm not following you," Xander said, pretending to feign confusion.

"Well you know," Ellie said, "The act."

Jana tried to curl up in a ball and disappear into her seat, she had never been so embarrassed in her life, "Xander, I tried to tell her."

"I think you're a bit confused, El," Xander said, "Nothing like that has happened."

"What really?" Ellie said confused, "Jana, why didn't you say that earlier?"

"I tried to," Jana replied.

"Well, I guess my brother is just as prudish as usually," Ellie said.

"Can we change the conversation please?" Xander pleaded.

"Of course, of course," Ellie said sipping her coffee, "Just know that I'll be there for both of you, whatever happens."

"Can we have a little less of the Oprah show? We've still got 130 miles until we reached Stoneybridge," Xander said, "I'd like still be sane by the time we get there."

"Ok ,ok," Ellie said, "I'll be quiet."

"Hallelujah," Xander replied.

"If you let me play that Disney CD," Ellie stated.

"I'd rather participate in a waterboarding session," Xander said.

"Well if that's a no," Ellie said.

"Ok, ok," Xander said, "Just don't play the Aladdin song. You know I can't stand it."

"You're the best big brother anyone can ever want!" Ellie exclaimed.

"This going to be one long journey," Xander said to himself with a sigh.

BREAK-BREAK-BREAK-BREAK-BREAK-BREAK-BREAK-BREAK

"I'm pretty sure the leg doesn't go there," Maddy said to Rhydian as he held a needle and thread in one hand and the leg of the wolf toy in his other hand, "Let me do it."

"Ok, fine," Rhydian said, "As long as it's ready by the time Jana gets back."

"It definitely will be," Maddy reassured him, "I don't think we needed quite to so much stuffing though."

"No, we needed that much stuffing," Rhydian argued, "Jana's going to want to keep it for at least another decade."

"I thought Jana said that it reminded her of herself in wolf form," Tom said.

"Yeah," Rhydian said in confusion.

"Well, Jana's not that fat," Tom said, "Don't you think she might find it a bit insulting."

"She's not a foot long the last time I checked," Rhydian replied, "I don't think we need to worry too much about the exact measurements."

"I'm sure she'll love it," Maddy said.

"Well it's not me that's in danger of being eaten," Tom said.

"When do you think they'll be back?" Shannon said nervously.

"In about half an hour I think," Rhydian said, "Jana's been texting me- a lot."

"More of the same?" Tom asked sympathetically.

Rhydian nodded, "Although there has some been some progress. She's only texting me every fifteen minutes, not every five."

Tom let out a sigh, "I hope Grace is not like that when she's older."

"I don't think anyone in the world is like Jana," Rhydian said, "I can't believe Xander and her are moving in together already."

"You'll be writing your Christmas cards to Xander, Jana and the bump, I bet," Tom said.

"She's my sister, Tom!" Rhydian yelled, "She's way too young for all of that."

Maddy cleared her throat.

"You're mature for your age Maddy," Rhydian explained, "Jana only became a tame wolfblood a few months ago, she doesn't understand humans the way we do."

"I wonder if humans and wolfbloods can actually have kids," Shannon pondered, "We're not technically separate species so it should theoretically be possible. But I wonder if they'd turn at the full moon or not? I wonder if they would experience the dark moon the same way as other wolfbloods."

Maddy shrugged, "Segolia might know."

"This is my little sister we're talking about," Rhydian said, "I don't want to think about all of that."

"You know we're all growing up right?" Tom said, "In a few years we'll all have jobs, families…"

"PhDs," Shannon added.

"Jana's not a little kid anymore," Tom said, "Even if she still needs that wolf toy to be able to sleep."

"I know," Rhydian said, "But I don't want her rushing into anything and getting hurt."

"Jana might not know much about the human world," Shannon began, "But she's not an idiot. She'll be ok, Rhydian, I'm sure she will be."

Rhydian smiled, hoping that Shannon was right.

Ellie rang the doorbell peering through the glass, "I can't believe I'm in Stoneybridge, it's so cool."

"Really?" Jana said doubtfully.

"It's just so beautiful," Ellie gushed.

"You must be Elloisya, I'm Gerwyn, Rhydian's father," Gerwyn said opening the door and bowing, "Welcome to Stoneybridge!"

Ellie smiled, "You have such a beautiful house."

"Thank you," Gerwyn said, "Technically it's Maddy's parents' house, we're just renting it from them. Make yourself at home."

"Hi," Tom said, moving a chair out of her way, "Ellie isn't it?" I'm Tom and this is Shannon, Maddy and Rhydian. Ceri will be here in a minute and Gwyn and Cadwr are upstairs and Meinir's still hiding I think."

"Hiding?" Ellie asked.

"Long story," Rhydian said, "By the way Jana, it's all fixed."

Jana rushed over to her brother and hugged him, "Thank you, it looks like new."

"I'm glad you're happy," Rhydian said.

"I told you already the answer is no!" someone shouted from upstairs.

"But I want to Gwyn," Cadwr pleaded, "I want to stay here."

"Well I don't!" Gwyn replied slamming the door.

"Don't mind them," Shannon said, "They always argue, so where are you from?"

"Norfolk, a little town outside of Norwich," Ellie replied, "If you can call it a town."

"Have you ever been to Northumbria before?" Shannon asked.

Ellie shook her head, "I can't wait to see Segolia tomorrow, Xander promised he'd take me there."

"Well you'll have to visit our research department, it's amazing, you'll love it," Shannon said.

"I'm sure it will be brilliant," Ellie said, "It will be interesting to find out what Xander does."

"I told you," Xander said, "It's top secret."

"Yes, Mr Bond," Ellie said sarcastically.

"Do you want to work for Segolia when you're older?" Shannon asked.

"Congress, actually," Ellie said in a matter of fact tone.

"What like the white house?" Tom asked in a surprised tone.

Ellie nodded, "I totally want to become a famous American politician."

"I'm happy being a working class James Bond," Xander said.

"That sounds awesome," Maddy said, "I'm sure you'd be a great president."

"Yeah, you could be the next Margaret Thatcher," Rhydian suggested.

"Oh, no," Ellie said in horror, "I'd never be like her. I'm far more left wing."

Rhydian nodded in pretend understanding, "I'll sort out some snacks and drinks."

"So where do you work?" Ellie asked.

"I don't," Tom said, "Well I sort of work a bit at the Kafe, it's our local café, but everyone works there so it's hard to get a shift. Rhydian and Maddy are just visiting from Canada, and I think Rhydian's going to start working for the Segolia security team in Calgary soon, Maddy's planning on going to college once the baby's been born, and Shannon, Jana and Xander work at Segolia- although Shannon starts college in about a week's time- she's studying biology, chemistry, maths and history."

"That's awesome, I can't wait to go to college," Ellie said.

"Which colleges have you applied to?" Shannon asked.

"Only the East Northumbria Sixth Form Academy," Ellie replied.

"Isn't that the private one?" Tom asked.

Ellie nodded, "Social services said they'd pay for me."

"I didn't know you were-" Rhydian began.

"It's ok," Ellie said, "It's not a big deal."

"Do you know if you've got in yet?" Shannon asked.

Ellie nodded, "I got my acceptance letter last month. I'm moving up here to live with Xander and Jana whilst I'm at college."

"Congratulations!" Shannon said, "Do you know what you're studying yet?"

"The IB," Ellie said, "International Baccalaureate- it's kind of like all the subjects you studying at school but a lot harder. It will be so amazing to go there."

"Jana could I talk to you a second?" Shannon asked.

"Yeah sure," Jana said following Shannon out of the room.

"Do you think we should mention about the serums?" Shannon asked, "The one's Alex invented. When we mention about you-know- what tomorrow."

"Why did we need to mention the serums?" Jana asked in confusion.

"Well you know how they healed Alex…" Shannon began.

"No, Shannon, you can't," Jana said in anger, "Ellie not a lab rat, Shannon."

"But if she could walk again," Shannon argued.

"It would be amazing yes," Jana said, "I agree. But those serums haven't been tested fully. And we can't just go back to Ellie's school with her all completely fine- how would we explain that, she probably wouldn't even be able to stay on at her school, it's for disabled children only- it's a great idea it really is. But it's not going to work."

"Maybe not now," Shannon said, "But in the future when she's at college and no one would care so much. We should at least tell her."

"We can't," Jana said, "I'm not sure Becca would even let you."

"It's worth a try though isn't it?" Shannon said.

"I don't know," Jana said, biting her lip, "I don't want to put Ellie in any danger."

"I won't," Shannon said, "But she has the right to decide."


	15. Chapter 15

"Let it go! Let it go!" Ellie and Jana sung as Rhydian and Maddy grimaced.

"Yes, please just let it go," Xander said miserably.

"What was that, Anna?" Ellie asked.

"I don't know, Elsa," Jana replied before hi-fiving Ellie.

"I can't believe we lost the bet," Maddy said, "In which cruel universe does Avengers lose to Frozen?"

"It's Cadwr's fault," Gwyn said.

"No, it's not," Cadwr argued, "Frozen is a good movie anyway."

"How was school?" Jana asked, trying to avoid an argument.

"It's was brilliant," Cadwr began, "I never imagined anyone could even know so much but the teachers know everything. There were so many strange things- paints and books and posters and things like that. It was so amazing."

"Did you get to talk to Ollie?" Rhydian asked.

Cadwr nodded, "I think we're going to be great friends."

"And what about you, Gwyn?" Jana asked.

"I got detention," Gwyn said proudly.

"That's my girl," Meinir said as she appeared in living room and ruffled Gwyn's hair.

"Meinir!" Jana exclaimed, "Detention's aren't something to proud about. What did you do?"

"She beat up two of the guys in her year," Cadwr replied.

"Why?" Jana asked.

"They offered her a chocolate bar," Cadwr said.

"What?" Ellie said with a laugh, "Why would you beat someone up for offering you chocolate?"

"Because people like us shouldn't eat the food that they eat," Gwyn said, looking directly at a sheepish Cadwr.

"What do you mean?" Ellie asked.

"She means that travellers tend to eat their own traditional foods," Jana said hurriedly, "Some of community doesn't agree with eating processed foods."

"So what kind of traditional foods do you guys usually make?" Ellie asked curiously.

"Oh, just anything that contains a lot of red meat," Rhydian replied.

"Like moussaka?" Ellie asked.

Jana nodded, not having a clue what Ellie was on about.

"We don't eat moose or cars," Cadwr said in confusion, "And anyway why are you going on about all of that travellers rubbish when you're going to tell her the truth anyway."

Ellie raised an eyebrow, "Jana?"

Jana looked sheepish, "It's a long story, and we wanted to tell you tomorrow."

"Are you not actually travellers?" Ellie asked.

Jana shook her head, "Not exactly, I mean we travel a bit but we're not travellers in the same way that Irish travellers or Roma are."

"Why did you lie?" Ellie asked, "I don't understand anything that's going on, all I know is there's something odd about you, Jana, and Meinir and Cadwr and Gwyn. You're all so different from anyone else I've ever met before."

"It's because we're wolfbloods," Gwyn said confidently, "Well Meinir isn't anymore, and Tom and Shannon and your brother are obvious humans- so are Liam and Mr Jeffries."

"Wait, what's a wolfblood?" Ellie said.

"It's kind of like werewolves," Xander explained, "Except they're born that way, not bitten. Some wolfbloods live amongst us like Maddy and Rhydian's families and others live in the country- in the woods and mountains- and are called wild wolfbloods. Jana used to be the alpha of a pack in Wales and Meinir, Ceri, Gwyn and Cadwr lived with her before coming to Stoneybridge. Wild wolfbloods don't have much contact with the human world. That's why they seem so different."

"So wait, you turn into wolves at the full moon?" Ellie asked.

Jana nodded, "We can turn into wolves any time other than on dark moon days like today. On dark moon days wolfbloods are usually very tired and more prone to sickness, you get used to it over time if you're a tame but in the wild pack we used to just sleep all day."

"I guess that explains why you were yawning all day," Ellie said, "It doesn't explain why you're so tired though, Xander?"

"I stayed up late," Xander explained, "Watching re-runs of the 100."

Ellie rolled her eyes, "Just one thing and please don't laugh ok, however ridiculous this might sound. But if werewolves- wolfbloods, I mean- if they're real then what about witches or vampires or fairies? And by the angel, what if shadowhunters are real- imagine if Jace Herondale actually exists?!"

"Who is Jace Herondale?" Gwyn asked.

"By the angel!" Ellie exclaimed, "Only like the hottest guy in the whole entire universe."

"Ellie, vampires and fairies don't exist," Rhydian said, "Witches sort of do, but they're your fortune-tellers, natural health practioners who believe in magic, just ordinary people who are open to the supernatural. As for shadowhunters, I don't even know what they are, so no I don't think so."

"So, you mean there's still a chance," Ellie said hopefully.

"No, Ellie, shadowhunters don't exist," Xander said with a sigh.

"I can't believe it," Tom said, "We tell you that your brother's girlfriend and her family are wolfbloods and you're not freaking out about it."

Ellie shook her head, "It's cool. Don't take this the wrong way, but I always wanted a pet dog."

Xander rolled his eyes, "Just don't try to play fetch with Jana during a full moon she doesn't like it."

Jana nodded.

"So that's why you went off to Norway," Ellie said.

Xander nodded.

"But Segolia organised it," Ellie realised, "Wait, is Miss Sweeney a wolfblood?"

Xander nodded, "And Dacia too. Becca isn't though, but she does research into wolfbloods."

"Wow!" Ellie exclaimed, "So now will you tell what you do at work?"

"We protect wolfbloods and humans," Jana said, "We deal with any rogue wolfbloods that are trying to harm us and anyone who threatens to reveal our secret."

"Ok, I understand," Ellie said, "I won't tell anyone, not even Lauren."

"Good," Meinir said, "Although I'm sure Alric would have something to say about of this, Jana. I doubt he would approve of your dating baldies or worst still telling them our secrets."

"Keep your muzzle out of it," Jana said, "I'll do what I want."

"Well I'm sure your father and Aran will have something to say about it when they get here next week," Meinir added.

"What how do you know they're coming back?" Rhydian asked.

"This," Meinir said passing a postcard to Rhydian.

_Hi Maynair,_

_The pak haz votayd to let u rejoyun uz, so wheel b een Stowkneebreedge soan. Alric hand I wheel come to breeng u hoam. _

_Lots of luv_

_Aran. _

"Who's Aran?" Ellie asked.

"My brother," Meinir explained grinning, "I'm sure he'll love to meet you."

"I'm glad Aran's keeping up the writing lessons," Jana said happily, "I told you they would come in handy, Meinir."

"Whatever, cub," Meinir said, before disappearing upstairs.

"Is she ok?" Ellie asked.

"Meinir only became a human a few months ago," Jana explained, "She used to hate everything about humans, it's a big adjustment for her."

Ellie nodded in understanding, "I can't wait to go to Segolia tomorrow."

"Yeah, just before I forget," Shannon began.

"No, Shannon, I told you no," Jana said.

"I told you Ellie has a right to decide," Shannon said.

"I'm sick of you doing the same thing over and over again, first the laptop, then stealing my DNA, when are you going to learn that somethings aren't your concern," Jana said.

"I just want what's best for Ellie," Shannon said.

"So do I," Jana said, "That's why I think this is a stupid idea."

"What is a stupid idea?" Rhydian asked.

"Shannon wants to use Kincaid's serum- the one he used to heal his leg- and see whether it works for Ellie," Jana said exasperated.

"Shannon, seriously, how many times?" Rhydian said.

"You don't need to worry, it wouldn't work anyway," Ellie said miserably, "You can't heal something that's irreversible."

Xander hugged Ellie, "It's ok. They're coming up with new things every day, it won't be long before we find a cure."

"But there is a cure!" Shannon exclaimed, "Becca said Alex's serum could help paralysed people walk again."

"That sounds brilliant," Ellie said, tears in her eyes.

"You're not doing this Shannon," Jana said, "You can't just play with Ellie's emotions like that."

"I don't get why you're so against it, Jana," Ellie said, "I mean if it's worked before and it's safe."

"I worked once before," Jana said, "It's only been tested once."

"I agree with Jana," Maddy said, "I'm sorry, Ellie, but Xander's right, other things will come along soon, better options that have actually been tested for effectiveness."

"But I want to try the serum," Ellie protested.

"What?!" Jana exclaimed, "But it's not safe."

"Ellie, it's a massive risk," Xander said, "I want you to be happy, I really do, but you don't really understand what you're getting yourself into. I know it's hard but you need to take a step back and think objectively, then make a decision."

"Of course, Xander," Ellie said, "I should have known you'd try to stop me."

"What?" Xander said, "I'm not saying that. I just think we should wait a while until the serum has been tested fully and then perhaps we should consider it."

"But I don't want to wait," Ellie said, "I just want to be better."

"Look, I know what it's like growing up not being as strong or as healthy as other people," Jana said, "I know it's difficult but you need to look past your emotions then you'll see that there's no point in risking your life like this, you've already got everything you need to lead an amazing life and be an amazing person. It isn't really worth the risk."

"It's Ellie's choice," Shannon argued.

"I can't believe it, Shan," Tom said shaking his head, "I thought you'd finally stopped all of this. We're not lab rats designed to further your scientific career."

"Shannon right and I want this," Ellie said, "I don't care about the risks, I hate living like this, I hate not being able to visit my family, I hate people pitying me or thinking I'm weak. I hate it that every time I want to go somewhere I have to get written permission and have someone accompanying me. I want to do amazing this with my life, and not being able to walk is holding me back. I want to try the serum, I want to be free."


	16. Chapter 16

"Yeah, ok," Xander said grinning as he spoke on the phone, "That's awesome. Yeah, we can be there for 1pm tomorrow. That's great. Thank you so much. I'll see you tomorrow. Bye."

"Jana!" Xander said, trying to wake up his girlfriend, who was dozing on the couch, "Jana, wake up!"

"Five more minutes," Jana mumbled, hugging the wolf toy to her chest.

"Jana, this is important," Xander said, shaking her gently.

"You can tell me in five minutes," Jana said sleepily.

Xander sighed, they had spent the whole night watching movies until it was well into the early hours of the morning and Xander had ordered Ellie to go to bed. Jana had fallen asleep at around ten and Xander was surprised that she'd been able to sleep through the loud action movie they were watching. He thought of himself as a deep sleeper but Jana took that to a whole new extreme.

He would have to change tactics, he thought, even if it was a little underhanded.

"Rhydian, stop eating all the bacon," Xander said loudly, earning strange looks from Rhydian and Maddy who were in the kitchen deciding what to eat for breakfast, "Jana's not going to get any at the rate you're going."

"Wait what?" Jana said waking up immediately.

Xander and Rhydian laughed.

"You two are so mean," Jana said, crossing her arms grumpily.

"We got some good news about the flat," Xander said before Jana could doze off again, "We're going to sign the contracts tomorrow and we should hopefully be able to move in over the weekend."

"Xander, that's amazing!" Jana exclaimed, throwing herself into his arms.

"Is it far from here?" Maddy asked.

"Only about ten minutes' drive," Xander said, "So no not at all."

"It sounds brilliant," Rhydian said.

"It is!" Jana replied, "We'll have to have a party once we've moved in."

"We can help you move in, if you want us to," Maddy offered.

"Thank you," Xander said smiling.

"It's ok," Rhydian said.

Ceri and Gerwyn walked down the stairs with the cubs following behind them, already arguing about something.

"Did you hear the good news?" Jana asked.

"No," Ceri said, "Go on."

"The paperwork for the flat has gone through," Xander said, "We're going to sign the contract tomorrow and then we're going to move in over the weekend."

"That's amazing!" Ceri said, hugging Jana and Xander, "But I'll miss you so much."

"We're only going to be living a few minutes away," Jana said, "I'll probably still be here quite a lot."

"When Jana moves out, can I have her room?" Gwyn asked, "I hate sharing with Meinir and Cadwr."

"Well Meinir will be leaving soon too," Jana said, "The pack's finally decided that Meinir can stay with them."

"So we'll be going home as well," Gwyn said merrily whilst Cadwr sulked.

"I want to stay," Cadwr argued.

"We don't belong here," Gwyn replied, "Our kind belongs in the wild."

"Maybe you do," Cadwr said, "But I don't. I'm a tame wolfblood not a wild wolfblood."

"We were born wild!" Gwyn shouted, "We were raised in the wild. We are wild through and through. You can pretend all you like but you'll never be a tame wolfblood, never."

Cadwr tried to hold back tears, "I'm staying, Gwyn. You can leave if you want to but I'd really like it if you stayed too."

"I'm not going to leave you Cadwr," Gwyn said hugging her brother, "But I'm not staying here either."

Cadwr stormed off into the backyard, the door slamming loudly behind him.

Gwyn rolled her eyes, "I don't get why he's making such a big deal about all of this. I don't understand his obsession with the human world. Once Uncle Alric gets here I'm sure he'll be back to normal."

"Gwyn!" Jana said, "If you think you can get my father to terrorise Cadwr into being wild again then you're wrong. Cadwr has a right to be tame if he wants to."

"I don't want to lose him," Gwyn admitted in a quiet voice.

"Look, Gwyn," Rhydian said, "Sometimes things happen and brothers and sisters can't live with one and other but that doesn't mean they never get to see each other again. You could live with the wild pack and Cadwr could live here and you could visit each other. It works for Jana and I, and it works for Xander and Ellie too."

"But Cadwr and I have been together forever," Gwyn said, "We've always done everything together."

"It'll be hard at first," Xander said, "But you get used to it. No matter what happens you'll both have a family and friends."

Gwyn nodded in understanding, "It could work, I guess."

Jana smiled as Gwyn rushed to find her brother.

"So are we having bacon baps or scrambled eggs?" Rhydian asked.

"Is that even a question?" Jana said.

"Well we're catering for humans as well, Jana," Gerwyn said, "And even some of us wolfbloods eat food that's not meat from time to time."

"Ellie's actually a vegan," Xander admitted.

"Don't worry we've got waffles," Maddy said as she grabbed a bag out of the freezer.

"Haven't you two got work today?" Gerwyn said as he flicked through a newspaper.

"Sweeney's letting us go in late because we're bringing Ellie with us," Jana replied, "How comes you're not going into work?"

"I called in and said I have food poisoning," Gerwyn replied.

"You know she's going to know that's the standard reply," Rhydian said.

Gerwyn shrugged, "You're mother and I have got some important things that need arranging."

Rhydian raised an eyebrow.

"Technically, according to wildy law, Ceri and I are already married," Gerwyn explained, "But we want to have an ordinary human wedding too so that it's all official, now that we're both tame."

"The wedding will be in two weeks' time," Ceri explained, "The day before the full moon. We wanted you to be here, Rhydian, Maddy and of course Ellie is invited too, Xander."

"That sounds great!" Jana exclaimed.

"We've still got a lot that needs arranging," Ceri said, "So we're not going to be back until late, make sure you all have a good dinner. Rhydian- that doesn't mean ordering in a pizza. And you need to make sure the cubs are in bed before nine."

"Yes, mum," Rhydian replied wearily, he hated being nagged.

"I'll go wake up Ellie," Xander said before walking into the other TV room that was at the back of the house.

Rhydian placed the bacon in the frying pan as Jana's stomach growled hungrily.

"Rhydian, what are you doing?" Maddy asked angrily, "You should have grilled them, it's healthier."

Rhydian laughed, shaking his head, "It's not going to kill us Maddy."

"But we said that we'd try to eat healthier," Maddy said, "Because of the baby."

"Ok, ok," Rhydian said apologetically, "I'll try to remember next time."

Jana's stomach growled loudly again.

"It'll be five minutes," Rhydian said to Jana, "I can't believe you're that hungry especially after you ate all of those biscuits last night."

"You can't blame me for eating all of those biscuits," Jana replied, "You lot decided to order in pizza and you know how much I don't like pizza. I hate to eat something."

"Yeah, but it didn't have to be biscuits," Maddy replied, "We have plenty of fruit and veg in the fridge."

"Maddy, no one eat salad on a movie night," Jana said.

"I can't believe you don't like pizza, Jana," Ellie said as she and Xander appeared in the kitchen.

"It tastes melted," Jana said shuddering at the thought of pizza, "Besides I'm surprised you ordered pizza, especially after what Shannon did."

"I thought you weren't mad with Shannon," Maddy said, "I know what she did was wrong but I thought you'd forgiven her for it."

"I'm sort of angry and sort of not," Jana said, "I mean she did save us from becoming humans, but nothing would have happened in the first place if she hadn't given Kincaid my DNA. And Meinir wouldn't have become human if none of that had happened either. I just can't believe that after everything that's happened she's so insistent about trying out that serum on Ellie. You'd think that she'd learnt her lesson by now."

"It's Shannon," Rhydian said, "I think she's always going to be obsessed with wolfbloods and science and stuff. She spent years looking for the beast on the moors, it's a part of her identity. But someone definitely needs to talk to her about not going too far, I mean I understand that making great scientific discoveries is cool but she shouldn't use us as a way to further her career."

"I just can't believe she'd suggest something so reckless," Jana said in an irritated tone.

"It's not like we can expect Whitewood to stop her," Maddy said, "I can't believe she got a job with Segolia, you'd think she'd be a major security risk."

"I understand why you don't like the idea," Ellie said to Jana, "But if it worked on that Kincaid guy why wouldn't it work for me? I mean I'm usually quite healthy, I'm young- surely there's less risk for me than there was for him. I want to give it a go."

"And what if something goes wrong?" Jana asked, "What will we do then?"

"And what if it all goes right?" Xander added, "You'll have to leave your school, right in the middle of your GCSEs, and the authorities will ask questions, they'll find out about the wolfbloods. It's a great idea, yes, but even if it works perfectly there's going to be problems."

"I know, but I've thought it out," Ellie said, "We can say that we lied about great uncle Terence and that we went to Newcastle to take part in stem cell trial for people suffering from paralysis. The school and social services won't like it but at least it would be believable, it's been on the news recently. If it doesn't work- well I'm not sure if they'd make me move schools, like you say I'd be in the middle of my GCSEs so I don't think they'd want to do something like that. If they did make me move schools, I'm sure they'd let me go to Bradlington High."

"It sounds like you've really thought this out," Ceri said, "But I'm with Jana on this, I don't even like the idea of using human medicine. Somethings are just the way they are because that's how nature decided they should be."

"And you're already perfect just the way you are," Xander said.

"Ok, ok," Ellie said, "But say if I decided to leave it a while, until I was at college, would you be happier about that?"

"Maybe," Xander said, "If during that time they tested it and it was shown to be safe."

"I don't know," Jana admitted, "I'm not sure, it would still be a bit too soon for me."

"You want to be a politician don't you?" Gerwyn asked.

Ellie nodded, "Definitely."

"Well you can still be a great politician even if you're disabled," Gerwyn said, "I remember when Jana broke her leg, she still was able to boss us around and get us to do whatever she wanted."

Rhydian laughed, "I think that was because Alric told us to let Jana have her way."

"Not Alric," Gerwyn replied, "Arianne, she was the one who spoilt Jana- always finding a way to get Jana out of doing chores, giving her presents, letting her eat before everyone else even though pack hierarchy stated that cubs should go last. But Jana was pretty demanding anyway, although you could blame that on genetics. What I'm trying to say Ellie is that it doesn't matter if you're big or small, disabled or not disabled, if you're a leader you're a leader and that's that and no matter what happens you'll always be a leader."

Ellie smiled.

"Ok, who wants breakfast?" Rhydian said as Maddy grabbed plates and cutlery out of the cupboards.

"Me," everyone shouted loudly and Gwyn and Cadwr rushed in to the house and straight to the table.

"Wash your hands," Ceri told the cubs.

"Erm," Ellie mumbled feeling awkward.

"Don't worry, Xander already told us you're vegan," Maddy said as she passed Ellie a plate of waffles.

"I'm surprised Dad hasn't started making jokes already," Rhydian said.

"Why did the vegetarian cross the road?" Gerwyn began.

Ceri rolled her eyes, "Rhydian, why did you have to say that." 

"Because she was protesting for the chicken, MAN!" Gerwyn said.

"That joke is awful," Gwyn said

"That Vaughans are vegans aren't they? It sounds pretty cool." Cadwr said, "I wonder if they're any wolfbloods that are vegan."

"Doubt it," Gwyn said, "They'd be an abomination anyway. Wolfbloods are wolves, we were born to eat meat, so don't get any ideas Cadwr."

Cadwr rolled his eyes, "We're part human too you know, we can eat human food too."

Maddy opened one of the kitchen cupboards and several packets of sweets fell out.

"Why do we have about a hundred packet of fizzy worms in our cupboard?" Maddy asked, in confusion.

Jana hid behind her hair as Cadwr started to laugh.

"They were the first sweets Jana had in the human world," Rhydian said.

Maddy shook her head, "Flushing toilets and fizzy worms. You have some of the weirdest obsessions ever, Jana."

"Flushing toilets?" Ellie asked.

"Don't mock," Jana said, "You don't understand just how easy life is in the human world compared to in the wild. You start to take things like running water and flushing toilets for granted."

"And central heating," Rhydian added.

"It would be amazing to live with the wild pack for a bit," Ellie said, "If I could. Just to see how they live."

"Alric would never allow it," Gerwyn said, "I'm pretty sure he's going to be furious when he finds out that Jana's dating a human. Even Aran will probably find it difficult to accept."

"I don't know why," Gwyn said, "Apparently Aran has unusual tastes too."

Jana rolled her eyes, "The rabbit thing was just a joke."

"I asked some of the old gang members," Gwyn said, "You know, Meinir's old gang, apparently it wasn't a joke."

"I hope it was a joke," Cadwr said in horror.

"It's Meinir's gang," Jana said, "They're going to say mean things and spread rumours, remember that story Meinir made up about souls night, just to scare us all? I wouldn't listen to them."

"Well I hope Uncle Alric doesn't try to eat Xander," Cadwr said, "He's pretty cool and you two are so cute together."

Gwyn gave Cadwr an irritated look, "WTF?"

"Gwyn!" Ceri yelled.

"Thanks, Cadwr," Jana said smiling.

"I wonder how we're related, I really do," Gwyn mumbled.

"Gwyn, enough," Jana said.

"Yes, alpha," Gwyn said automatically.

"What would Alric do?" Ellie asked, "If he didn't approve."

Rhydian smiled, "Let's just hope he does."

Ellie nodded understandingly.

"We should probably get ready for our trip to Segolia," Xander said.

"I have no idea what I'm going to wear," Ellie said to herself.

"Clothes," Xander suggested.

"I swear if you could get away with wearing nothing but black all the time you would," Ellie said.

"Yeah I would," Xander said, "But you'd never let me."

"If you think shopping with me is a nightmare just wait until you have to take Xander clothes shopping," Ellie said to Jana, "It's hell trust me."

Jana laughed, "I'll keep that in mind."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

"Ellie, it's been two hours!" Xander yelled as he waited by the door.

"I know," Ellie said, "I'll be ready in five minutes."

"You said that half an hour ago," Xander called back.

"Ok, ok," Ellie said as she appear in the corridor, "I'm ready."

"Do you really need to wear that much makeup?" Xander asked.

"It's just a bit of eyeliner and eyeshadow," Ellie said, "It's not excessive."

"We're going to my workplace," Xander replied, "Not a nightclub."

"I think its fine," Jana said appearing at the bottom of the stairs and putting on her coat.

"Really?" Xander said.

"We don't live in the Victorian era, Xander," Ellie complained, "And even then I think they were allowed to wear makeup."

"Ok, ok," Xander replied, "Let's just get going."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

"Wow this place is amazing!" Ellie exclaimed as they entered the building, "It's so big."

"This is actually one of the smaller Segolia offices," Jana said, "There's only a few hundred people working here, there are thousands of people in the other offices. There's offices in 52 countries and there planning on opening a new research lab in Wales."

The lift opened to show Miss Sweeney and Dacia.

"And if I catch you updating your Facebook status again during work hours," Miss Sweeney said.

"I told you I was on lunch break," Dacia protested.

"Xander, Jana," Miss Sweeney said as she saw them, "This must be Ellie."

"It's so great to meet you," Ellie said, "I'm so grateful for all the help you've given us, I don't know how we would have coped without you."

Miss Sweeney smiled, "It's the least I could do. I'm glad to have your brother working for us, there are few that are as skilled as he is. It's a shame you're not currently planning to work for us, we could help you achieve amazing things, however after today I'm sure you might well consider working for us in the future. Dacia, if you could help show Ellie around. Jana, could you come with me please."

Jana nodded, "Sure."

"See you later," Xander said kissing Jana on the cheek.

Jana followed Miss Sweeney up a flight of stairs to the security department.

"So where do you want to go first?" Dacia asked.

"To the research department," Ellie said excitedly," Shannon's told me so much about it."

Dacia smiled, "It is pretty awesome."

"I think the work they're doing on you-know-what is pretty interesting," Ellie said.

"She knows," Xander explained.

"You told your sister!" Dacia exclaimed.

"Jana's going to be moving in with Xander and I'll be living with them when I go to college," Ellie explained, "I was going to figure it out anyway."

Dacia shook her head, "I can't believe this. Miss Sweeney's going to be livid."

"I thinks she's already guessed," Xander replied, "And she likes Ellie anyway. So no harm done I guess."

"Well I won't be held responsible if something goes wrong," Dacia said as she walked towards the lift.

"Don't worry, nothing will go wrong," Ellie reassured her.

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

Jana walked in to the server room to see two human guys kneeling on the floor with their hands tied behind their backs.

She didn't recognise them but they both looked about Aran's age and were covered in tattoos of strange red symbols and had scars on their faces and arms.

"Did your father ever tell you about the idea of human obligates?" Miss Sweeney asked.

"Yeah, it's a wolfblood myth," Jana said, "Human slaves that served the wolfblood alpha lords back in the dark ages, they thought that if they sold themselves to the wolfblood kingdoms then they would become one of us."

"Yes, well it wasn't a myth," Miss Sweeney said, "And it didn't just happen in the dark ages. We caught these two trying to break into our offices last night. They said they were looking for you. Any idea why?"

"The wolfblood that attacked Xander and I," Jana said, "They might have something to do with him."

"Him?" Miss Sweeney said, "How do you know it was a him?"

Jana cursed herself before passing Miss Sweeney the letter.

Miss Sweeney read the letter quickly, "You should have told me sooner."

"But he wants my territory and he wants to hurt my pack," Jana said, "He doesn't want to hurt anyone else."

"It does seem he has a personal vendetta against you," Miss Sweeney began, "But you can rely on us to help you. They make war with your pack and they make war with all of us. Seen these two to the holding bay. I'll deal with them later."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

"Ellie!" Shannon said as she spotted her friend, "Becca, this is Ellie, Xander's sister."

"Nice to meet you," Becca said.

"Nice to meet you too," Ellie said, "This definitely beats our labs at school."

Becca laughed, "The research and development department receives about half of Segolia's budget a year and we still get grants from research councils. We have some of the best research labs in the world."

"Wow," Ellie said, "So what kinds of research do you do?"

"Well we're currently doing research into sea cucumbers for cancer therapy," Becca replied.

"She knows," Shannon said.

Dr Whitewood nodded understandingly, "But I'm sure you'll want to hear more about our specialist work."

Ellie nodded, "I'm particularly interested in the serums that Shannon told me about."

"No doubt you are," Becca replied, "They could really help someone like you. They're currently undergoing testing on human cells, and they look very promising, although we're not sure at the moment about how many illnesses could be treated using the serums although it's hinted that they're very effective in treating damage to musculoskeletal and nervous systems. It'll be another few years before we can move on to human trials, it takes a while to get approval from the government. But considering how well they're doing it seems like a worthwhile wait if they're going to cure so many diseases."

"I thought I knew what I wanted to do after leaving school," Ellie admitted, "But now I'm not so sure, I'd love to something like this."

"Becoming a politician or a scientist," Xander said, "It's a hard decision. I suppose in some ways it's good that I'm more bruany than brainy there's not so many decisions to make."

"Take a look at this," Becca said passing a tablet computer to Ellie.

"Wild wolfblood and tame wolfblood DNA," Ellie said reading the title of the page, "Wait, there are differences, some of the bands on the chromosomes don't match."

"We're still trying to work it out," Dr Whitewood admitted, "It appears that some wolfbloods like Rhydian have both the tame and wild genes, suggesting it's epigenetic rather than inherited and the mutations- where they are on the chromosomes suggest that wild wolfbloods have stronger immune systems than tame wolfbloods and humans."

"I guess that's probably why Jana has bad allergies," Xander said, "Hypersensitivity I guess."

"Yes something like that," Becca replied, "Sometimes the immune system can too far. Although wild wolfbloods do have genes that protect against inflammatory disorders."

"Maybe it's just the human world," Xander pondered, "All the chemicals and stuff, probably makes a wild wolfblood sick."

"It is a possibility," Dr Whitewood said, "In fact that's line of research Alex was looking into before… well you know."

"Cerberus," Xander said.

"The three headed dog?" Ellie asked, "Is that what Jana was on about when she said about someone turning the wolfbloods into humans."

"Yes," Shannon said, "Dr Kincaid thought that wolfbloods were a threat that needed to be eliminated. He captured Jana's pack and used a serum to try to turn them into humans. We managed to stop him and everyone apart from Meinir was ok. He doesn't work here anymore of course."

"Good," Xander said.

"Xander I need your help with an important delivery that's just come in, there's something unusual about it," Becca said, "Shannon do you want to show Ellie the experiment we were setting up earlier, Mary will help if you whilst I'm gone."

"Ok," Shannon replied, watching as Dr Whitewood and Xander left the lab.

"Ellie," Shannon said, "I've got it."

Ellie beamed happily, "Does Becca know? Is that why she asked for Xander's help?"

"No, she doesn't," Shannon said, "Although I kind of had a hypothetical discussion about it earlier, and she said she wasn't totally against the idea. We need to be quick though."

"Ok," Ellie said excitedly, "Shannon, do you know where the toilets are?"

"Oh, there at the far end of the corridor on your left, do you want me to take you there?" Shannon replied, playing along.

"Yeah that will be great," Ellie answered.

"Mary, we'll be back in a minute," Shannon said to the middle aged woman, who smiled in understanding.

"Oh my god, Xander's going to kill me," Ellie replied, "But it's going to be worth it, if this works."

"I know, I know," Shannon said, "But you need to keep calm, there's cameras everywhere."

"Ok," Ellie said, "I don't want you getting into any trouble."

"I won't," Shannon said, "We just need to be careful."

Shannon opened the door to the bathroom, "It's empty, come on we don't have long."

Once the door was closed Shannon pulled the 'sonic-screwdriver' out of her pocket and Ellie smiled excitedly.

"It looks just like a stele," Ellie said, before seeing Shannon's confused face, "It's a shadowhunter thing, never mind. Let's do this."

Shannon passed the 'sonic-screwdriver/stele' to Ellie, "You need to press to button and fire it at your neck, ok?"

Ellie nodded, holding the device in her shaking her hand, "I can't believe I'm doing this. What if something goes wrong, what are we going to do?"

"It didn't hurt Alex," Shannon said, "I'm sure you'll be ok."

Ellie took a deep breath before pressing the button. She could see a laser of red light out of the corner of her eye and could feel a tingling, itchy sensation where the beam hit her skin. The laser beam faded and she felt adrenaline flow through her.

"How do you feel?" Shannon asked.

"Like I've got loads of energy," Ellie admitted, she tried to wriggle her toes and to her surprise she could move them and there was no pain at all, "Shannon, it worked, it really worked, oh my god! I can't believe it! This is so amazing!"

Shannon smiled widely, "I can't believe it either."

Ellie jumped up and hugged Shannon, "Thank you so much."

"It's ok," Shannon said, "You're sure you're not in any pain."

"No I feel great," Ellie said, "We she probably go back to the lab before anyone wonders where we've gone. What are we going to tell the others? Jana and Xander, I'm so worried about what they're going to say."

"They should be happy," Shannon said, "This is what everyone wanted. Don't worry leave it to me, I've dealt with a moody Jana plenty of times, I know what to do."

"Maybe I should just pretend to be disabled for now at least," Ellie said, sitting back down in the wheelchair, "I don't want to shock them by just strolling in there and I don't want you to get in trouble either. And to be honest, it's been a while since I could walk, I'm a bit wobbly and my muscles aren't as strong as they used to be."

"The serum should help with that," Shannon said, "Yes, for now we should pretend. We'll tell them later after I've finished work."

"Thanks, Shannon," Ellie said, "You're awesome."

"Oh, it's nothing," Shannon said.

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

"So how's your visit going?" Jana asked Ellie as they waited in the queue in the cafeteria.

"Segolia's so cool," Ellie said, trying to keep quiet about what had happened earlier, "I'm so not sure what to do after school now."

"Well you're still doing the IB," Xander said grabbing some plastic trays and cutlery, "So really you could whatever you want. Besides loads of politicians take a totally unrelated degree. You could study a science degree and then decide after that."

"Sounds like a plan," Ellie said.

"Could I get the spaghetti carbonara please?" Jana asked the lady serving the food, "Thanks."

"It's not like you, not getting meat," Xander said.

"I'm doing it to prove that my family doesn't need to eat meat to survive," Jana replied tactfully.

"Spaghetti carbonara does have bacon in it though," Xander said.

"Well Gwyn doesn't need to know that," Jana said.

"Could I get the same please?" Xander asked, "And Ellie, what do you want?"

"Could I get the steak and mushroom pie please?" Ellie asked.

Xander dropped his tray in shock, "Ellie, you're a vegan. You've been a vegan since you were five. What are you doing?"

"I just really need meat," Ellie said, "I don't know why, I just really need red meat."

Xander cussed under his breath as he grabbed his tray and Ellie's and headed over to the table where Shannon and Jana were sitting.

"So who do you think she'll choose as bridesmaids?" Jana asked Shannon.

"You and Maddy of course," Shannon replied, "You're practically Ceri's daughter and Maddy's pretty much her daughter in law. I wonder what the colour scheme will be."

"Are you talking about the wedding?" Ellie asked, "I really hope Ceri lets me help with planning, I love planning parties."

"Shannon," Xander said trying to hide his anger, "We need to talk."

"Oh, ok," Shannon said in partial confusion, "I'll be back in a minute."

"Xander what's wrong?" Jana asked.

"I'll explain later," Xander said.

"Wait, Ellie," Jana said, as the other girl ate her pie ravenously, "Isn't that the steak pie? I thought you were a vegan?"

"I don't get what the big deal is," Ellie said moodily, "It's only one time in the past decade and I just really need red meat right now, ok?"

Jana felt exasperated and angry and felt her cheeks burn with rage. She couldn't believe it, she really couldn't, after everything they'd said, Shannon still had the nerve to do something like that.

"Jana are you ok?" Ellie asked, concerned, "You don't look well."

Jana looked straight at Ellie, "Please tell me that Shannon did not go behind our backs and give you that serum."

"Jana," Ellie said, "She was just doing what's best for me."

Jana slammed her hand down heavily on the table earning shocked looks from the people sitting at the surrounding tables.

"It worked," Ellie said joyfully, "It really worked. I mean, I'm probably going to need to go to physio for a while, just because I've probably got muscle wasting but after that I'll just be like everyone else."

Jana shook her head, "Yeah, because everyone else gets random cravings for meat."

Ellie shrugged, "It's not exactly a major side effect. I can live with it, it'll be difficult but I'll get used to it. You don't think I actually like eating meat, I can't help picturing cute little baby animals when I look at this, but I need the iron, I really do."

"I'm going to tell Becca," Jana said, "You need a doctor, you really do, if anything happens. I swear, I don't care if it's worked, I'm never going to forgive Shannon for this."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

"Xander, please be reasonable," Shannon said.

"Me? Be reasonable?" Xander said, "I've spent tons of my life putting up with other people's stupid mistakes. I've been far too reasonable for far too long. She's my sister, Shannon, she's my little sister, my only sister. How could you just rush in and do something like that, and without even telling us? What if something serious had happened? Don't you dare lecture me on being reasonable."

"I was just trying to do what's best for her," Shannon said.

"What's best for you you mean," Xander said, "Ellie would have had a great life even if she was disabled. She would have gone to Oxford or Harvard, become a politician or a scientist, won awards, probably married Rory and had his kids. She had a great life all planned out and now you've gone and ripped it apart, all because you just want to prove yourself."

"But she's better now, she can walk again," Shannon said, "It's what everyone wanted."

"No," Xander said, fighting to hold back tears, "What I want is to go back in time and stop the accident from happening, then for my family to move to Stoneybridge so that I could have met Jana and her family. That's what I want, for the accident to have never happened in the first place. I want to protect my little sister. And don't try to tell me that she's perfectly ok, a strict vegan suddenly deciding that she absolutely has to have red meat is not ok. That's going to seriously mess her up, you know she used to go to meetings of vegan societies and protest about animal rights, she used to stand on the streets with pictures of animals kept in cages that were sick and deformed trying to argue that we should all give up meat. I didn't totally agree with that kind of campaigning, and I'm glad Ellie isn't so strict with me about what I eat. But do you know how she's going to feel about that? Even before you consider how it's going to affect her in terms of school and her friends."

"I'm sorry, Xander," Shannon said, "I was just trying to help her. She seemed so miserable about being disabled."

"She could have talked to me about it," Xander said, "Or Jana. There are councillors at her school that specialise in things like that they could have helped her as well. You've known Ellie for less than two days, I've known her for the whole of her life. She gets upset, she stays upset for a day or so and then there's a party to plan, or a shopping trip or an exam and she forgets about being upset and moves on. She's not depressed, she's normal and she was handling this well. She's young Shannon, and idealistic, she wants to save the world- no scratch that, she feels like it's her duty to save the world- and she doesn't want anything to stand in her way. You don't know her like I do."

"Xander, I didn't mean to hurt anyone," Shannon said.

"I understand, what's done is done," Xander said, "I'm angry but there's no reversing this, and I wouldn't want to now. Just please tell Becca, we need to make sure Ellie is going to be ok. And just promise me one thing."

"What?" Shannon asked.

"Stay the hell away from my family," Xander said, "I'm not letting you near Jana or Ellie again."


	17. Chapter 17

Ellie sat grumpily on her bed in the infirmary. She felt sick but was pretty sure it was due to excitement and worry rather than the serum. She kicked at the sheets miserably wishing that she could complete her tour of Segolia or go home. She looked through the brochure that Dacia had given her. Whilst Ellie was good at science she didn't know if she wanted to go into research. The reason why she wanted to be a politician was because she wanted to tell people what to do, to stop them from doing stupid things that hurt others, and to try to the unnecessary suffering of others. Whilst creating cures for diseases obviously would reduce people's suffering it didn't have the same appeal as politics. Ellie knew she would love to work for Segolia but really didn't know quite how she would fit in there.

Xander paced backwards and forwards in deep thought. Ellie could see he was angry and that somewhat scared her. Not because Xander was violent when he was angry- he didn't even shout or cuss, which could sometimes be irritating when Ellie argued with him because he always was so reasonable even when she wasn't. It was because Xander had such a long temper, if there was such a term, Ellie hated the idea of Xander being angry because it reminded of just how serious things were and just how much trouble she was in and it made her realise the gravity of the decision she had made.

Jana stood in the corner staring at the floor dejectedly. Ellie felt a pang of guilt in her chest, Jana was like a sister to her, always looking out for her, always wanting the best for her. Ellie knew that even if Xander and Jana broke up, which was incredibly unlikely (in Ellie's opinion they should already be planning their wedding), Jana would always be her friend. She felt like she'd betrayed her.

Dr Whitewood and Miss Sweeney walked through the doors of the infirmary and Ellie let out a quiet groan. As much as she missed her mum and dad terribly she didn't miss the ways parents would nag. She knew she was in for an almighty lecture and wished she could hide.

"How do you feel?" Dr Whitewood asked.

"A bit restless," Ellie said, "I can't stand just sitting here."

"It's probably just psychosomatic," Dr Whitewood said to Miss Sweeney, "I mean after a decade of being paralysed being forced to stay in bed isn't going to make you feel great."

"So can I get up?" Ellie asked hopefully.

"Not just yet," Dr Whitewood said, "We need to do some more tests. You do look very pale. Are you anaemic by any chance?"

"I used to be," Ellie admitted, "But I thought I was back to normal."

"We'll do a blood test," Dr Whitewood said, "Anaemia could explain the cravings for red meat, although it is a little unusual."

"So you mean I won't have to eat meat again if I don't want to?" Ellie asked.

"You should be ok to remain a vegan," Dr Whitewood replied, "Alex never mentioned about any meat cravings when he took the serum but then again he was the kind of guy who had a fry up every morning and an eighteen ounce steak for dinner every night."

Ellie screwed up her nose, "How could someone live like that?"

"Wolfbloods eat a lot of meat," Jana said.

"Yeah, I know," Ellie said, "But wolfbloods are part wolf, you kind of have to. It's different. Humans don't need meat to survive. I don't think everyone has to completely forgo meat, not unless they want to, but eating it in excess is just wrong."

"How often do you get colds or infections?" Dr Whitewood asked.

"I only get colds about once or twice a year," Ellie replied, "Hardly ever get infections."

Dr Whitewood took Ellie's pulse, "Your pulse is quite fast."

The colour drained from Xander's face.

"Is… is she going to be ok?" Xander asked in a quiet voice.

"Xander, come on, sit down," Jana said, helping sit on the edge of the bed.

"It's just excitement and nervousness I think," Dr Whitewood said, "Her pulse is within a normal range."

Xander let out a breath that he had been holding.

"Do you have any medical conditions or any pre-dispositions towards any medical conditions?" Dr Whitewood said.

"I get migraine headaches sometimes," Ellie said, "Only every few months. Xander, are there any medical conditions in the family, I can't remember you telling me about any?"

"Mum was asthmatic," Xander said, "Ellie does suffer from hay fever but it's only mild."

"Have you mentioned to any of the nurses at your school about your headaches?" Dr Whitewood asked.

"Yeah, they said they were usually brought on by changes in humidity or exam stress or staying up to late, things like that," Ellie said, "I haven't had a headache in about half a year, that's probably because matron keeps on checking on me to make sure I don't pull all-nighters during exam season."

"So it's unlikely that the serum would affect any pre-existing medical conditions," Becca said, "I think you're mostly just suffering from anxiety- you're probably a bit worried about how everyone will react."

Ellie nodded, "I'm sorry for causing so many problems."

"Ellie," Xander said in a painfully small voice before hugging his sister tightly.

"It's not your fault," Miss Sweeney said, "You shouldn't have been able to access the serum, irregardless of how much you wanted to try it. The serum was protected, kept behind locked doors that could only be opened by using the correct key-cards. You shouldn't blame yourself for this, I know what it's like to be headstrong, stubborn and impatient- those aren't necessarily bad qualities- no one's going to tell you off for the choice you made. I think quite a few people in your situation would have made the same choice and had you decided to take the serum in a few years' time after it had been fully tested I think everyone would have been completely fine with that. Just use your new found freedom wisely, you have the potential to achieve amazing things, don't take that for granted."

"Please don't be too harsh on Shannon," Ellie begged, "She was just trying to help me."

"There are protocols and rules," Miss Sweeney began, "Shannon knew the rules and she decided to break them. Even if she did have the best intentions at heart she's still responsible for what she did."

"And I'm responsible for what I did too," Ellie argued, "For the choice that I made."

"Not entirely," Miss Sweeney said, "You're fifteen, you're still a child, and having a disability can wear you down. You can't be expected to full comprehend the extent of a decision like that. You're young, of course you're going to act impulsively."

"Shannon's not much older than me," Ellie said.

"She's old enough to know that putting someone's life in danger, even if it may make them full better, is never a good idea," Miss Sweeney said, "Shannon was more than able to think logically about this situation and yet she didn't choose the logical solution."

"What are you going to do?" Ellie asked.

"Shannon has been suspended pending enquiries," Miss Sweeney said, "What she did was serious. I didn't want to have to suspend her, she's very talented and had a promising career with us but she needs to learn where to draw the line. Science can only achieve great things when it used alongside of ethics. I'm hoping she'll learn to understand that."

"Ellie seems to be ok, although I think she should take it easy for a few days, maybe stay off school so that someone can keep an eye on her," Dr Whitewood said, "How much of the serum did you take?"

"I found the device in one of the bathrooms downstairs," Jana said passing it to Becca, "I think she took all of it."

"That can't be possible, she'd be dead," Becca said in a quiet voice. The screen said that there was no more of the serum left in the device, Ellie must have taken all of it.

"I didn't know how much to take," Ellie said, "Shannon said just to press the button, she didn't say for how long."

Xander turned red with fury and kicked out at the metal bedframe, grimacing as pain shot through his foot.

"Xander, don't," Jana said, wrapping her arms around him, "Don't hurt yourself."

"Did Shannon know it was a lethal dose?" Xander asked trying to keep his voice level.

Jana shook her head in disbelief, how could Shannon have done something like that? Didn't she care about her friends at all? If she had allowed Ellie to take a lethal dose… well she hoped she'd never see Shannon again, for Shannon's sake.

"Well, I," Becca stuttered.

"Becca, please just tell me the truth," Xander begged.

"Shannon understood about the concentrations of the serum used in the product," Becca admitted, "I never specifically said that using all of it would be lethal, but there was a large amount of serum in the device. I don't think Shannon meant for Ellie to use all of it."

"But she allowed her to," Xander said as tears ran down his cheeks, "It's all my fault, I'm supposed to be one of the best security guards according to you, I'm not supposed to let things like this happen. But not only did I let a breach of security happen but I let it happen right under my nose and I… Ellie could have died because of it."

Miss Sweeney hugged Xander, in a show of compassion that took Jana by surprise, "You're one of the best security guards we have. Do you remember the Cerberus project, the way you kept on telling me to reanalyse the data provided about Gerwyn, the way you said it look forged? I wish I'd listened to you. You're smart, maybe not bookish like your sister, but you're able to pick up on small details, work out when things aren't quite right. Don't let something like damage your trust others and don't berate yourself about it either, nobody would have been able to stop something like this."

"Where is Gerwyn anyway?" Becca asked, "It might be good to have an adult present."

Xander cleared his throat.

"Sorry, I didn't realise you were over eighteen," Becca apologized.

"Gerwyn's got food poisoning," Miss Sweeney said in a doubtful tone, "I've also got a lovely load of queries that he needs to run through the databases for when he decides that he feels better."

"I'm pretty sure he has a good reason for being off," Becca said.

"This is Gerwyn we're on about," Miss Sweeney, "He's the best accountant we've ever had, but he's also the most irritating person I've ever met."

"He's helping with wedding planning," Jana admitted, "I wasn't supposed to say anything. Him and my Aunt Ceri are having an official wedding, one that will recognised by the courts, it's in two weeks- I'm sure they'll be sending out invitations soon."

"Well, maybe I could find someone else do those query searches," Miss Sweeney said, "Although if he could make it here it would be good."

"I'll call him," Jana said, putting a hand on Xander shoulder, "Be back in five."

"We should probably get on with that blood test," Dr Whitewood said, walking over to a cupboard next to the sink.

"Xander," Ellie said, in a panicked voice, "Do I have to?"

Xander nodded, "Sorry, kiddo. It's for the best. I can distract you from it if you want."

"Do you not remember what happened when they gave me the vaccines a few months ago?" Ellie asked, "You practically had to pin me down."

"They might have laughing gas or something like that," Xander said, "I know it's not exactly appropriate, but it can help people relax sometimes."

"I'm not sure it would advisable at the moment," Dr Whitewood said, "Not that laughing gas usually causes any problems. Plenty of people are scared on needles, I find if you focus on something else it tends to help."

"I have just the thing in mind," Xander said, "Is it ok to use the Wi-Fi in here?"

Becca nodded, "Yeah its fine."

Xander got up the page, which he wasn't surprised to find had been saved into his favourites pages.

"Here you go," Xander said passing the phone to Ellie.

"Oh my god, Xander, where did you find this?" Ellie asked excitedly.

"That cup site you're always on about," Xander said.

"It's called Tumblr, Xander," Ellie said disdainfully, "You should know that by now."

"I still have the names of all the Herondales stuck in my head," Xander complained, "I can't believe that you made me memorize the family tree."

Becca tried to not to laugh as she overheard their conversation.

"It's not that awful," Ellie said defensively, "Besides you were the one who bought me the books in the first place, this hell was your creation."

Xander groaned, "I didn't think you'd become so obsessed. I really hope you don't ask to dress up as Isabelle Lightwood again this Halloween, it took me ages to find an affordable pair of boots."

"I'm going as Cecily Herondale this year," Ellie said, "Don't worry I already have the costume, it's the one I wore for that Victorian masquerade ball last winter. Of course, I wonder what will happen now, if I'll be able to stay at the school."

"They'd be making a stupid decision if they kicked you out," Xander said, "Who's going to organise all their parties?"

Ellie smiled, "Oh god, it would Lauren. I means she's good at organising things, and she has a good taste in music, but she can't sort out colour schemes at all."

"And I suppose if you are allowed back, you'll be taking Rory to the dance?" Xander asked.

"Naturally," Ellie said, wincing as she felt the needle go into her arm.

"He'll be going as that scone guy then," Xander said, trying to distract his sister.

"Gideon? No he's going as Gabriel, honestly Xander, how many times?" Ellie said shaking her head, "Gideon is the scones guy and he's married to Sophie and Gabriel's the numbers guy and he's married to Cecily."

"You probably should have put a spoiler alert before that," Xander said.

"Oh shut up," Ellie said looking down at the phone, "I'm trying to admire this fan art of Jace. Gosh, I wish he was real."

"If he was real wouldn't Clary also be real?" Xander asked.

"You know I never realised before but Jana looks exactly like Clary, I mean with the red wavy hair and the green eyes and the fact that she's so small," Ellie said.

"I'm sure that will make her day," Xander said.

Jana entered the room seconds later, "Yeah, he's coming, and so's Ceri. Rhydian and Maddy will probably be here soon too."

"And Tom?" Ellie asked.

"He's already here," Jana said, "He was supposed to be meeting Shannon straight after work. He's not taking this at all well. Apparently he's broken up with Shannon because of everything, it's probably for the best at the moment."

"How likely is it that Rhydian's going to cause a scene?" Becca asked, "I know how angry he can get sometimes."

"Erm, well," Jana said, "Maddy did say something about bandaging his hand before they left and the impression I'd got was that was he punched a wall or something like that. I suppose at least he didn't punch a window."

Ellie grimaced as Dr Whitewood using an alcoholic wipe to disinfect the small cut and put a plaster over it.

"All done," Dr Whitewood said, "The results should be back in a couple of hours."

Ellie smiled, "Thanks."

"Does anyone want anything to eat or drink?" Becca asked as she left the room.

A chorus of no, thank you's followed.

"You should rest," Xander said, "Today's been a long day."

"I can't," Ellie replied, "I feel like I want to run a mile."

"I'm going to see if Rhydian and Maddy have arrived yet," Jana said, "I wonder how Maddy's going to react to seeing Dr Whitewood again."

"Probably better than she'd react to seeing Shannon right now," Xander said.

The doors of the infirmary opened and Gerwyn and Ceri rushed in, Rhydian and Maddy following behind them.

"I'm so sorry," Ellie said, "I never wanted to hurt you."

"Hush now," Ceri said, "You might feel well, but you're not, you need to rest."

"I can't," Ellie protested.

"I didn't even know this place existed," Gerwyn said, looking around, opening and closing cupboards.

"Don't muck about, please," Ceri said.

"Ok, ok," Gerwyn said defensively, "So how are you feeling, Ellie?"

"I feel good," Ellie said, "I wish I could just go outside though."

"You will soon," Gerwyn reassured her.

Dacia burst through the door and wordlessly flung a small folder at Ellie.

"Oh, there won't be a problem, will there Xander?" Dacia said angrily, "This is why we don't just tell anyone."

Xander watched as Dacia stormed.

"Does she ever stop whining?" Gerwyn asked.

Rhydian paced backwards and forwards angrily.

"Rhydian," Gerwyn said, "Rhydian, calm down, please."

Rhydian shook his head, "I could seriously kill her for doing this. Ellie's practically family, she's definitely a member of the pack. I'm sorry if I'm jumping the gun here, but at the rate Xander and Jana are going they'll be married soon after Maddy and I and probably have kids not long after that. Ellie is a part of our family and I'm not going to let anyone hurt my family."

"Rhydian, I'm not going to get pregnant before I'm at least twenty five," Jana protested, "I mean do you really see me coping with a baby?"

Rhydian chuckled, "Ok, but you know what I meant."

"I'm happy that you think of me as family," Ellie said with a smile.

Rhydian smiled, "We all do."

The door burst open as Tom walked in.

"Are you ok, El?" Tom asked in concern, "I can't believe Shannon would do something like that. I mean we all know Shannon goes way too far sometimes. But actually allowing you to take a lethal dose of that stuff. It's just, I really hope she didn't know it was a lethal dose."

"Wait a minute? She did what?" Rhydian asked in ferocious anger, "Jana why didn't you tell me that."

"Because I knew how you'd react," Jana said, "I want to protect you. If you attacked Shannon you'd feel miserable afterwards and I didn't want you to hurt yourself."

Rhydian's breathing was fast and haggard.

"Rhydian you're not being fair," Jana said.

"Oh, just shut up Jana," Rhydian snapped.

"Rhydian!" Ceri said, "Don't take this out on your sister. You're not angry with her."

"I know, I know," Rhydian said, "I'm sorry Jana."

Jana tried to hold back tears and Rhydian seeing that she was upset hugged her ruffling her wavy hair.

"I didn't mean to snap at you," Rhydian reassured her, "I don't want to hurt you."

"Shannon's just destroying everything," Jana said.

"Guys," Ellie said in a trembling voice, as she looked down at the folder, "Everything's gone to Azerbaijan."

"Azerba-what?" Rhydian asked.

"Mum wouldn't let us swear, so we instead replaced swear words with ex-soviet states," Xander said, "That way Mum wouldn't tell us off. What is it Ellie?"

"Can we do that?" Gerwyn asked Ceri, who shook her head and sighed.

"Segolia sent the school and social services a letter saying that I'd undergone stem cell treatment, you know the cover story I came up with earlier. They've bought it, luckily enough. But they're completely and utterly Ukrained. They're not letting me go back to the school, apparently I've got to go and collect my things tomorrow and then my social worker says there's going to be a meeting at the end of the week discuss what's going to happen next. They know about the flat, I think the idea is that they want me to stay at Ceri and Gerwyn's place until you and Jana move in. Then I'm hoping they'll let me stay in Stoneybridge."

"Belarus!" Xander exclaimed.

"I know, I know," Ellie said, "You don't have to tell me."

"I think this ex-USSR idea is great," Gerwyn said to Ceri.

"Not now," Ceri said to Gerwyn.

"I've had enough of this," Rhydian said as he headed towards the door.

Maddy began to run after him.

"Maddy, don't," Ellie said, "The baby."

"I'll go after him," Jana said towards the door.

"I'll help you," Tom said quickly following after her.

"Rhydian, please," Jana heard Shannon beg, "I didn't know. I honestly didn't know."

"You expect me to believe that!" Rhydian yelled.

"Rhydian don't," Jana said, trying to restrain him, "Don't do something you'll regret."

"You tried to kill her, didn't you?!" Rhydian shouted.

"I never wanted anything like that to happen," Shannon said.

"But you knew there was a lot of the serum in the device," Rhydian said breathing fast, "You knew there was a lethal dose in there."

"Yes," Shannon admitted, "I didn't expect Ellie to take all of it."

"Well how the hell was she supposed to know how much to take?" Rhydian asked in disbelief.

"I knew from Kincaid's notes that a lot of serum was needed for it to have the desired effect," Shannon tried to explain, "It was Ellie's choice anyway, she understood the risks."

"Shannon just go now," Jana said, "Please just go."

Rhydian could tell that his eyes were glowing yellow and the veins on his hands were turning black. Jana jumped in front of him, trying to calm him down.

"Jana, move!" Rhydian shouted.

"I'm not going to let you hurt her," Jana said, "Please, just get this under control. For Ellie and me, please."

Rhydian calmed down slightly and his eyes faded back to their normal blue, the black veins almost disappearing.

"How can you say that she fully understood, Shan?" Tom asked in disbelief, "She's fifteen, she's a kid. You don't know what it's like to live with a disability. To just want to be normal, it plays on your mind. At least I can hide my dyslexia most of the time, but having a disability that's visible twenty-four seven. Ellie went through a lot at a young age, and she might be strong but she's still just an idealistic teenager who wants everything to be perfect. No one could full comprehend a decision like that, Shannon, and you should have known better."

"Tom please," Shannon begged, "Can't you see I was trying to help Ellie, trying to help her have a good life?"

"There's something you can do to help all of us have a good life," Rhydian said, "Never speak to us ever again, never go anywhere near us, got it. Leave us alone."

"Sorry Shannon, but I'm with Rhydian on this," Jana said, "I wish it didn't have to come to this. But Ellie's pretty much my sister, I need to do what's right to protect my family."

"Tom," Shannon begged.

"I'm sorry, Shan," Tom said, "It's too late."


	18. Chapter 18

"God, I'm going to miss the pumpkin spice lattes," Ellie said, "I swear it should illegal for a town not to have a Starbucks."

"The coffee that Kafe serves is pretty good," Xander said, "You'll get used to."

"I guess we're only half an hour from Newcastle," Ellie said, "I think I'll be able to live."

Jana, Elllie and Xander sat at one of the large tables in the Kafe, drinking their cups of tea and coffee and eating cupcakes and burgers. They had been there for about an hour already discussing what had happened with Ellie and Shannon and what to do about Elgar and a possible impending attack.

"Is there no way you could stake out Elgar," Ellie said, "I mean, if he loses the element of surprise then maybe he would be easier to defeat."

"He's a WB, Ellie," Xander said quietly, "Jana saw him once before, she said he's even bigger than her father. Even with Segolia involved it would be massive task. I think the best thing for now is to just avoid him, at least until we can come up with a better plan."

"I think making him lose the element of surprise would be good," Jana said as she stirred her cup of coffee, "And maybe if we had some of those tranquiliser darts we could use them instead of attacking him. We could find his camp wait until he was outside, and then boom! Problem solved."

"Do you not remember what happened last time we used tranquiliser darts?" Xander asked, "I'm not very good at archery."

"Well," Jana said, "I could always help."

"You know archery?" Xander asked in disbelief.

Jana nodded, "It's a long story, but you can thank Rhydian. If he hadn't bought that toy bow and arrow set when we were three then I'd have never been able to create replica. Look, let's face it, when it comes to Elgar I'm about as much use in wolf form as I am in human form- and I want to be able to help."

"I want you to stay the hell away from him," Xander said.

"Yeah, my brother's right, Jana," Ellie said, "This guy just sounds like Valentine, Sebastian and Mortmain all mixed up into one."

Xander rolled his, "Ellie no one understands the references."

"Not yet," Ellie said, "You did promise you'd read the books, didn't you, Jana?"

Jana nodded, "I promise I will read them Ellie."

"I think I'll need to pre-order some Prozac," Xander said.

Maddy and Rhydian walked into the Kafe their hands entwined, their heads close together and they wore large smiles on their faces.

"Tell us, tell us, tell us," Jana chanted excitedly.

"Here you go," Maddy said, pulling a photo out of a large brown envelope.

"Oh, wow," Jana said, clasping her hands together in excitement.

"Everything's fine with both of the babies," Maddy said, "They're doing very well."

"Wait you're having twins?" Jana asked in shock.

Rhydian nodded, "Yeah it's a daunting prospect."

"Jana, could you not see that there were two babies in the photo?" Ellie asked, "See there's head there, and then another one there."

"Yeah, ok, ok," Jana said, "How on earth are you going to cope with having twins?"

"Mum said the same thing," Maddy replied, "But I think we'll be ok, I'm looking forward to being a mother, I always knew I wanted to have kids. I almost wish they were here now."

"And what about you Rhydian?" Jana asked her brother.

"I'm still trying to get my head around the idea of being a father at sixteen, no wait I'll be seventeen when they're born," Rhydian said, "I'm sure I'll be ok, but it will be a bit of a shock. At least mine and Maddy's parents will probably help us."

"I don't think Ceri's the type of grandparent who's going to do everything for you two," Ellie said, "And to honest if they spent too much time around Gerwyn their first words would probably be expletives."

Maddy laughed, "Don't worry, I want to take care of my kids properly, I want to be a good mother."

"And I want to be a good father too," Rhydian said, "I know full well my Mum and Dad would skin my alive if I let my kids down in any way."

"Does Bryn know?" Jana asked.

"Not unless Aran told him," Rhydian said, "I don't even know if Bryn is with the pack or not. I think he was pretty Ukrained about Jana's compulsory reading and writing lessons."

"Well Aran, Cadwr and Gwyn know the benefits of being literate," Jana said, "Even if Gwyn is just using her newfound skills to write profane poetry about the teachers."

"Be careful what you wish for I guess," Xander said, "Is it true that Ceri's thinking about training to become a proper doctor."

Jana nodded, "It's going to take years. GCSEs, then A levels then a degree. But I'm sure she'll ace it. Wild WB education might not be like human schooling but we still study similar things, especially when it comes to the natural sciences, even if we express it in a slightly different way. With Dr Whitewood's help I'm sure she'll do well."

"I'm still trying to get my head around Dr Whitewood being nice to us," Maddy said, "I mean she is the reason why my pack got split up. If she hadn't been so nosy we'd all have still be together."

"But we wouldn't have the babies," Rhydian said, "Just think about it, if we'd all stayed here then your parents wouldn't have let me stay over because they would have expected me to stay with the Vaughans, at least in Canada they allowed to me to sleep over at their place because there was no other place to go. So I guess in a sort of strange why we can thank Dr Whitewood for that."

"And she did help to save our lives during the meteor shower," Jana added, "She definitely went too far before but at least she's learnt her lesson now and she seems to be trying to make amends."

"I know," Maddy said, "I can't believe she's actually dating Mr Jeffries."

"You can't believe it?" Jana said, "I think everyone knew it was going to happen."

"Ok, ok," Maddy said, "But I never thought it would be official."

"Hi, you lot," Liam said suddenly appearing with Tom, "And who is this?"

"This is Ellie," Xander said, "My sister."

"Hi, Ellie," Liam said in a somewhat flirty tone, "Nice to meet you."

Ellie pursed her lips, before answering gracefully, "Lovely to meet you too."

"Maybe we could get a coffee some time," Liam suggested.

Rhydian, Maddy and Jana gave him a look of utter disbelief.

"She already has a boyfriend, Liam," Xander said.

"Oh, erm, sorry," Liam said awkwardly.

"It's ok," Ellie said.

"I can't believe you cut off Shannon like that," Liam said, "Not that the crazy nutter didn't deserve it."

"Liam!" Maddy yelled, "Don't call Shannon a crazy nutter. I feel so bad for her."

"What the hell, Maddy?" Rhydian said, "She almost killed Ellie."

"I'm not saying what she did was right, definitely not," Maddy said, "But we've known each other since playschool, Shannon's not evil. I don't think it was fair you and Jana to say that she never see any of us ever again."

"Maddy," Rhydian said, "We've got more than just ourselves to worry about, we're going to be parents in six months' time. I don't like the idea of Shannon experimenting on them, but I know full well that if nothing changes then that's exactly what's going to happen. Maybe once she understands what she's lost because of what she did then she might change, but things aren't going to like they were before."

"Look, I know you're mad at Shannon," Ellie said, "But I made the choice to take the serum, I pressed the button. So why aren't you yelling at me?"

"Because no one expected you to make an objective decision because of your age and your disability," Xander said, "Shannon should have been able to think objectively, it's really quite that clear cut."

"Not for me it isn't," Ellie said, "I wish you'd just let me speak to Shannon once."

"No, Ellie," Xander said, "I'm not getting you dragged into another of her crazy plans. If Shannon wants to win a Nobel Prize then she can do it another way, a way that doesn't involve any of us."

"Look, Shannon needs to learn her lesson," Jana said, "We've been lucky so far, but what if that serum had actually killed you? What if Kincaid had managed to wipe out our species? I doubt we would have been so nice to Shannon then and we certainly wouldn't have considered the possibility of letting Shannon back into our lives eventually. She needs to decide how much we mean to her, because at the moment it just feels like we're nothing more than lab rats to her."

"Even if she does come back into our lives," Rhydian said, "I'm never letting her be alone with the babies, never."

"I agree," Maddy said, "I am mad with her, even if I'm not screaming or wolfing out. But I can't help wondering if she's ok."

"Yeah, me too," Tom admitted, "I really thought she would grow out of her old games. She can be a great friend, but then she goes and does things like and it's just so irritating. I mean she knew she would lose us if it all went wrong, so why did she do it anyway?"

"We accept the love we think we deserve," Ellie replied.

"What?" Rhydian asked in confusion, "What are you on about?"

"Maybe she's trying to do the things because she's desperate to prove that she be a good person," Ellie said, "Maybe when she was younger she didn't have a lot of people in her life who made her feel great about herself so she doesn't know how to be happy with who she is and what she's already achieved. Maybe this is her way of pushing us away because she feels like she doesn't deserve our friendship."

Rhydian nodded in understanding.

"But she had us," Maddy said, "We were always there for her."

"Yeah, I know," Ellie said, "But what about her parents. What were they like? You can the best friends and siblings in the whole world, you can be surrounded by the best people ever but all it takes is one person to make you feel less than human and it can affect you badly."

"Her parents weren't always very understanding," Tom said, "Especially when it came to the whole beast on the moors thing. They were quite pushy too, always wanting her to be the best."

"But that doesn't make what she did right," Rhydian said.

"No, of course not," Maddy replied, "But you have to admit it makes her sound a lot less like a monster and a lot more like a human being."

"Shannon's obviously got her own things that need sorting out," Tom said, "And we can't fix that for her. She needs decide if she's going to do that, and she needs to do that for herself not because she feels like she has to because anyone is asking her to."

"I agree," Jana said, "She needs to decide how much we mean to her and how she wants to live her life. She needs to realise that she doesn't need to prove herself to anyone. When I was pack leader, if I had that kind of attitude I would have been overthrown or even assassinated, when you're a pack leader you have to know yourself, trust yourself and not rely on others to tell you what to do. It's true I had Ceri to help, but she helped, she didn't do everything for me. Shannon needs to decide if she's going to remain the terrified little cub who needs her parents' approval for everything, or if she's going to live her life the way she wants to not caring about what they think."

Rhydian nodded, "So are we all agreed that for now at least we stay away from Shannon, just until we know that she's starting to make the right choices."

Tom, Jana, Liam and Xander nodded.

"I want to thank her for helping me," Ellie said, "I don't want to just ignore her."

"You'll only encourage her to do the same thing again," Xander said, "She needs to learn that what she did isn't acceptable."

"Ok, I understand," Ellie said, "But the first sign that she's doing the right thing I'm going to start talk to her again."

"I agree with Ellie," Maddy said, "We need to let this all cool down but I'm not prepared to cut Shannon off forever."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

"Where is he?" Meinir asked for what seemed like the hundredth time. She looked up at the clock which she still didn't understand and felt overwhelming irritated. Aran should have arrived an hour ago.

"Let me go see," Jana said as she walked out into the backyard.

"He's probably seen a rabbit he really likes and got distracted by it," Gwyn said mockingly.

"That jokes older than Jana's boots," Meinir replied.

"Well, I can't wait to go back to Wales," Gwyn said as she dumped a heavy rucksack down on the table, "I mean Stoneybridge is ok, but winters in Snowdonia compared to winters here. There's no real comparison."

"You'll probably have your first transformation this winter," Cadwr said, "And I won't be there."

"If it's over the school holiday you will," Gwyn said, "Remember you promised to visit. And the packs already trying to decide if we're going to spend the summers in Northumbria instead of the midlands. The vote will likely take ages, but considering Alric and Aran are the most prominent members of the council of elders I think already know the decision that they're going to make."

"But Meinir will take her seat on the council again won't she?" Cadwr asked.

Gwyn shrugged, "I don't if they'll let her, or if it really is a case of whether they'll let her or whether she'll just take it back without asking. Either way you might be surprised to know that Meinir has a lot of reasons to be wanting to come back to Stoneybridge again."

"You little gremlin," Meinir said furiously.

"Go on," Cadwr said.

"Well Meinir has a boyfriend," Gwyn said.

"Who? May tell us, please," Cadwr asked.

"Well I thought it was Jimi," Gwyn said, "But apparently there's too much of an age difference. Meinir's not telling me anything."

"Are you sure this boyfriend does actually exist?" Cadwr asked, "May's probably just yanking your tail."

"Yeah, he's probably inflatable or something like that," Gwyn said.

Meinir rolled her eyes, "He's real and he's also none of your business."

"I wonder if May will start telling us more if we tell Aran," Cadwr suggested.

"No, she'll start repeatedly flushing your head the upstairs toilet," Meinir said, "Haven't you got homework to be doing?"

Cadwr nodded excitedly, pulling a book out of his rucksack, "Lord of the Flies."

"Maybe you should give that to Jana once you've finished with it," Meinir suggested.

"Yeah, I will," Cadwr said in confusion.

"They'll be here in five minutes," Jana said, "Aran was getting us some dinner."

"Not flipping rabbits," Meinir said.

"Yup," Jana said, "Although Rhydian bought soy sauce and ketchup when he went to store earlier."

"That should help a little," Meinir said, "I can't even believe I just said that."

"I told you your diet would change with time," Jana said, "You just need to get used to human foods."

"Ice cream is an abomination that should be eradicated from the world," Meinir said authoritively.

"But you like gelato and sorbet," Jana said, "Isn't that pretty much the same thing?"

Meinir shrugged, "Wolfblood food is so much simpler. Do you want your meat red or red? Uncooked or uncooked? Human food can be so annoying, I mean do you really need a hundred different versions of a burger, it's the same sheep. It still goes baa and then eek."

"I wouldn't let Ellie hear you talk about sheep like that," Jana said, "She'd probably force you to go to one of those awful rallies. I can't get that picture of the little lamb out of my head, I wish I hadn't agreed to go along. I swear I'm going to end up vegetarian soon."

"Can I be a vegetarian too?" Cadwr asked.

"What is this talk of vegetarianism?" Alric asked angrily as he walked into the house, Aran following behind him, apparently neither of them too bothered about being in a human house.

"A little social experiment," Jana said, "We're trying to see if it's feasible for a wolfblood to survive without eating meat."

"It isn't," Alric said, "They'd die of starvation. Now come here, Jana, I haven't seen you in months."

Jana hugged Alric, "I missed you too, Dad."

"How's my little fluffy alpha?" Aran asked, hugging Jana and ruffling her hair.

"I'm good thanks," Jana said, "The others should be here soon."

"Aran," Meinir said hugging her brother, "I missed you so much. You should have never left."

"Can you really imagine me living like this?" Aran asked, "Watching reality TV shows and eating… salad?"

Meinir laughed, "No, of course not."

"Well, for tonight at least we'll be all eating a normal wolfblood diet of good raw rabbit," Aran said, "And may the curses of all the wolfblood gods be bestowed on anyone who even thinks of eating tofu instead."

"What's wrong with tofu?" Ellie asked defiantly as she appeared in the room, "Oh, you must be Aran and Alric? It's great to finally meet you."

"Who are you?" Alric asked.

"I'm Ellie, Xander's sister," Ellie replied, "Xander is Jana's boyfriend."

"I'm just going to find Rhydian and Maddy," Jana said trying to make speedy exit but her father's managed to stop her.

"You're dating one of them," Alric said in shock, "That's completely wrong, Jana. It's unbelievably wrong. Nothing can happen between you two, you need to stop this right now. I know you Jana, five minutes with a guy who only even is moderately interested in you and you've already planned out your wedding and the names of your children. You'll never be able to have that kind of life, wolfbloods and humans can't have cubs. You'll only end up getting hurt so end it now."

"Yeah, I'm dating one of them," Jana said defiantly, "And he knows about us, and so does Ellie. I love Xander, end of. If you try to anything to him I'll.. I'll…"

"You'll do what?" Alric said, "I'm your father you can't threaten me."

"I'll make you eat salad and tofu and make you go to Ellie's veggie rally at the weekend," Jana threatened.

"Ok, I'll let it go for now," Alric said, "But don't think that I'm just going to allow this."

"I think it's to be expected," Aran said, taking a seat at the table, "I mean you were going to originally be with Rhydian and he's practically a human anyway."

"Aran," Jana cautioned him.

"I'll have to meet the guy first," Aran said, "But I'm pretty sure whoever this Xander guy is, well his sister wouldn't be strolling around here like she owns the place if he was horrible and treated you badly."

"Aran!" Ceri said as she walked through the backdoor, and she hugged him.

"Okay, okay," Gerwyn said, "Who hung the rabbits on the washing line, that's just too macabre even for wildies."

Ellie made a retching noise before running out of the room.

"We had to put them somewhere," Alric protested, "Did you want their blood dripping on the kitchen floor?"

Ceri rolled her eyes, "Next time just let us deal with dinner."

"I'll go and check on Ellie," Jana said.

Jana walked towards to bathroom and could hear that Ellie was vomiting.

"Are you ok?" Jana asked.

"No of course I'm not Belarus-ing ok," Ellie said, tears on her cheeks, "Sorry, Jana, I didn't mean to snap. I just, I can't be around them right now. I knew they were going to be different. I can't wait until Xander gets back with my things, he'll make them shut up. Oh god, it was all going so well before that. By the angel, Aran is hot."

"Ellie, no, just no," Jana said, "He's like eight years older than you."

"It's not that bad," Ellie said, "I just wish he wasn't so anti-vegetarian. I would really like to get to know him better."

Jana looked at Ellie horror, "I'm going to have to tell Xander. I'm not going to let you hit on Aran."

"Why not?" Ellie asked, "I think underneath all of that stand-of-ish-ness he might actually like me."

"He might actually like you!" Jana exclaimed, "You've known him for all of two minutes."

"Ok, ok, I'm just kidding," Ellie said, "But he is kind of cute."

Jana shook her head, "He's only going to be staying for a couple of days, and then he's going back to the wild."

"Well that's plenty of time for us to go for a coffee," Ellie said cheekily.

"Aren't you like forgetting Rory?" Jana asked.

"I'm not going to see Rory for a while," Ellie said, "Not now. We both didn't feel like doing the whole long distance thing."

"You broke up with him?" Jana asked.

Ellie nodded, "He's still my best friend. And I have to admit, it was a little awkward. Anyway I prefer older guys."

Jana let out a breath, "Please, just don't do anything stupid."

"Don't worry I can handle this," Ellie reassured Jana.

_**Can't believe this has reached over 50 reviews, thank you so much! **_____


	19. Chapter 19

"Anthrax?" Jana asked in shock, "Xander, why didn't you say anything earlier?"

"I didn't want to panic anyone," Xander said, "I thought it would be better to bring it up once Aran and Alric got here. I mean Alric knows Elgar better than we do, and he's probably the only one out of all of us who could take on Elgar. We need all the help we can get, Jana."

"I just can't believe that he's finding these ways to infiltrate Segolia," Jana replied, "I mean first the human obligates and now sending poisoned messages."

"You don't need to worry too much," Xander said, "If he thinks you're working for the science department then it appears that whoever is feeding information to him isn't as great a spy as he was hoping they would be."

"A spy?" Jana asked, "I guess it makes sense. But who could it be?"

"I've got a few ideas," Xander said.

"Who?" Jana asked, "It would have to be someone who really hates us."

"Maybe Alex then," Xander suggested, "I mean, I know he hates all wolfbloods but it was your pack that managed to reveal and thwart his plans. And if you're telling me that Alex was capable of imprisoning a whole wild wolfblood pack including your father and Aran then I don't think we should really second guess Alex."

"What other ideas have you got?" Jana asked.

"Human obligates, perhaps," Xander pondered, "It depends on how long he's been planning something like this. I guess he would have had to know that you were working for Segolia. So I guess no more than a few months. I would have to check who was recruited around the same time that you were, not that they wouldn't undergone stringent security checks themselves."

"It wouldn't have been obligates," Jana replied, "They brand themselves, I asked my father about it and he said that the branding is absolutely compulsory, he said that not branding an obligate is like a wolfblood alpha making his whole pack turn vegan. It's beyond sacrilegious to our species."

"I wonder what else your father knows about obligates," Xander said.

"Not much," Jana replied, "Our pack formed over four hundred years ago when my great, great, great, well-you get the idea- grandfather became alpha, that title has been carried down through my family ever since. Of course Elgar could have tried to take leadership of our pack through my brother, what with being his father- he could have become my brother's regent and tried to overthrow my father."

"Seems strange," Xander pondered, "I mean why kill someone if you know that you could become a pack alpha."

"It does seem strange," Jana agreed, "And it's been six years too, why would he wait so long?"

Xander bit his lip, and then something clicked in his mind.

"Come on you two," Ellie hassled, "We need to get my things inside before it rains."

"Ok, ok, princess," Xander said, forgetting what he was just thinking about, "I can't believe that one person can have so much stuff. I swear the tyres were touching on the arches the whole drive back."

Ellie rolled her eyes, "Stop exaggerating."

"I'm not exaggerating," Xander argued.

"I think Ellie does have a point," Jana said picking up a box, "I mean look at the label you put on it, 'another Belarus-ing box of clothes'."

"You should be glad that you get managed to get the big room," Xander said, "You really need it."

Ellie smiled, "I've already thanked Cadwr."

"It is only until the weekend though," Xander said, "Three more days until move in to the flat."

"Did we order a big enough removal van?" Jana asked.

"I think we'll be just about ok," Xander said contemplatively.

"You needn't worry too much," Ellie said glumly, "Most of this stuff is outfits I wore for dances and things I was preparing for the Halloween and Christmas balls. I guess I probably won't be needing them anymore."

Xander sighed as he watched Ellie walk back into the house, "I think she's realising being able to walk again isn't always awesome."

Jana put a hand on his arm, "She'll adapt. Maybe if we spoke to Mr Jeffries about letting her help out with the Halloween dance. Maybe having something like that to plan would make her feel better."

"I don't know," Xander said, "I mean it usually would. But she's not even interested in helping plan for your aunt and uncle's wedding. Usually she would be completely stressed out with planning everything considering there's only two weeks to go and hardly anything has been sorted out."

"That's my uncle for you," Jana said, "Gerwyn is famous for leaving everything to the last minute."

"Yeah, Auntie Vicky is always complaining about the amount of stress he causes when he hands reports in at a minute to five on a Friday evening," Xander said laughing, "I guess he hates working to deadlines."

"Auntie Vicky?" Jana said, "You don't mean?"

"Miss Sweeney," Xander said, "It's what Ellie started calling her a few year ago. Don't give me that look. Ellie was eleven when I started working at Segolia- she was still into dolls and hello kitty and pigtails, of course she was going to come up with some ridiculously sweetie-pie name for my boss."

"It's adorable," Jana said, "Although kind of worrying. I suppose Miss Sweeney will be closest thing I have to a mother-in-law if… ok, I'm thinking too far ahead."

Xander smiled, "Don't worry, everyone was already thinking about stuff like that weeks ago, especially Ellie. You know she keeps on sending me websites for jewellers and adding things to wish lists on websites. I swear as soon as we move in its going to be hell, everyone's going to be thinking that we're well... you know."

Jana smiled, "Don't you think it seems a bit crazy that we're moving in and you know, we haven't... done that?"

"I guess," Xander said, "But I didn't think you'd be ready for all of that."

"I think if I'm ready to move in with you then I'm ready to do that," Jana said, "I'm not a little Xander, I'm old enough to know what I want."

"Ok," Xander said as he kissed Jana passionately.

"Erm, guys!" Ellie yelled, "Less smooching more moving! Ceri said dinner's going to be in fifteen minutes and the last thing I need is for Aran or Alric to spike my veggie burritos with rabbit."

Xander held Jana in his arms, "I know what I want too."

Jana smiled excitedly as she grabbed one of the last boxes. She wanted to tell someone but she had no idea who, Ellie was Xander's sister, so obviously, Rhydian, Tom, Aran and Alric would bury Xander alive, she'd never hear the end of it if she told Gerwyn or Meinir, the cubs were too young, Maddy- well there was a possibility she wouldn't tell Rhydian but her and Maddy weren't exactly close. And Ceri, well she didn't really feel like facing a two hour long lecture about safety etc. etc.

Ellie blocked the door giving Jana a quizzical look.

"Oh, shut up," Jana said as Ellie smiled.

"It's about time to be fair," Ellie said taking the box from Jana.

Jana shook her head, Kazakstaning brilliant! she thought sarcastically.

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

The wolfbloods ate ravenously tearing into the rabbit steaks like they'd been starved for months. Ellie seemed to be enjoying her veggie burritos too, in fact she seemed to be trying to prove that they tasted better than the rabbit steaks, Jana thought. Jana looked at her own burritos, they were nice but she'd kill for some rabbit right now. No, she thought to herself, I can't think like that, I've got to do this with Cadwr, I've got to prove the wolfbloods can be vegetarian. It didn't help that Xander seemed to like the rabbit steaks too, she was hoping the Ellie would lecture him about it but all Ellie had said was that if the rabbits were dead they shouldn't be just thrown away.

"This is brilliant, Ceri," Gerwyn said, wiping his hands on the edge of the table cloth, earning a horrified look from Ceri.

"Thank you," she said with a smile.

"Yeah this is brilliant," Aran said, "I missed your cooking. You don't how lucky the rest of you are."

"I don't know why we couldn't just have them raw," Alric replied. Being a pack alpha for so long had made him expect to be treated like a king and he was certainly wasn't grateful for his followers hard work.

"Dad, stop complaining," Jana said, "Ceri gone to all this trouble, I think it's brilliant. Thank you so much, Auntie Ceri."

"Thank you," everyone said.

"Oh my god, Rhydian, is that coca cola?" Maddy asked in horror.

"Please, I haven't had any sugary drinks in weeks, Maddy," Rhydian said in a pained voice, "And you want me to give up chocolate and sweets next week. Just let me have this one cup of sugary rubbish."

"Actually sugar withdrawal can cause hypoglycaemia," Ellie said.

"Oh so that's your excuse for eating so much vegan ice cream," Xander said.

"Well," Maddy said grabbing the cup and pouring the contents down the sink, "If you need sugar, eat an apple."

Rhydian groaned as Tom laughed.

"The woes of being a teenage father," Tom mocked, "If you think this is bad just wait until the babies arrive. I hate baby-sitting Grace, do you know how irritating a two year old can be? Always sticking her fingers into plug socket, trying to eat my headphones, throwing a tantrum when I don't let her eat a whole trifle, and I only have to look after her about one a month for a couple of hours. You two get the joy of looking after two adorable babies twenty fours a day, seven days awake for the next eighteen years at least."

"You were right to get rid of that coke, Maddy," Rhydian said, "I think I need something stronger."

Ceri laughed, "Sure raising kids can be stressful, especially if they're really like Rhydian and Bryn, but it is one of the greatest experiences in life that you can ever have."

"I'm happy being single," Aran said, "I don't have to worry about things like that."

"Do you think you'd ever get married though?" Ellie asked, "If you met the right person."

Jana dropped her fork in shock, earning a sly smile from Ellie and a questioning look from Xander.

"I don't know, probably not," Aran said, "I haven't given it much thought."

"Well-," Ellie said.

"Well, I think that Rhydian and Maddy will be great parents," Jana said, "Should we toast to them?"

Everyone nodded and picked up their glasses.

"To Maddy and Rhydian," Jana said, "May you have a happy life with your family."

"Maddy and Rhydian!" most of the people cheered whilst Gerwyn added 'And the unborn sprogs' and Alric rolled his eyes.

"So Elgar," Alric said, "I say we take him on tonight. Cover of darkness, he used to be a part of my pack when we were just cubs would you believe. Most wolfbloods are night owls, nocturnal by nature, by him, as soon as the sun dipped below the horizon he'd be snoring, I say we go, sort him out and that will be that."

"He has human obligates," Jana said, "They'll be up keeping a eye form."

"A punch of tattooed humans," Alric said, "I can deal with them."

"What are obli-guts?" Cadwr asked.

"Load of raving loonies," Alric said, "Throwing away their humanity like that, I mean being a wolfblood is the best thing in the world but being a werewolf, you can't change when you want, you only get your super speed and the like at the full moon. It's like eat a gone off piece of meat, you might feel really hungry but it's going to leave an awful taste in your mouth afterwards."

"Werewolves?" Jana asked.

"Yes, did you not pay any attention to anything I taught you?" Alric asked in an irritated tone, "I told you about them when you were nine. Of course you must have been daydreaming about Rhydian during that particular lesson."

"Of Uncle Alric," Meinir said, "Jana was daydreaming about Rhydian during all of her lessons. I'm surprised she was able to lead the pack at all."

Jana growled.

"Oh, bite me!" Meinir said mockingly, "You know it's true."

Jana flashed her wolfblood eyes menacingly at the older girl.

"So wait werewolves are real?" Rhydian asked.

"I thought they were just a legend," Gerwyn said, "You know how the older cubs used to tell us horror stories about them on dark moon nights, I thought it was just something they made up to keep us younger ones obedient and fearful."

"No," Alric said, "I only found out after being exiled, they're real enough."

"How did you find out?" Ceri asked.

"Well, a failed obligate came up to me and asked if I'd become his master," Alric said, "Of course, I said know, I'm not in to all of that rubbish, but he told me what he'd experienced."

"How do they fail?" Tom asked, "What happens to them then?"

"Well if they're not physically or mentally strong enough," Alric said, "Most of them go through terrible things to try to become werewolves, if they're not already mad, well just telling someone what they've experienced is enough to get them locked up for life."

"It's sickening," Ellie said, "I mean, why would someone keep human slaves?"

"Power, mostly," Alric said, "It's a symbol of a great leader amongst though who still care about that kind of stuff, for most people it's a symbol that someone is a great big idiot who's stuck in the dark ages. But humans can be useful too us, they can help us get medicine and clothing sometimes, work within the human world. A wolfblood leader should be able to do that anyway, otherwise they have no right to call themselves an alpha."

"The anthrax," Xander said, "There are human obligates working in Segolia."


	20. Chapter 20

Jana threw her clothes down on the bed in frustration. She had come to Stoneybridge with pretty much nothing but now she had more clothes than she had at any point in her life and still she didn't have anything that she wanted to wear. She knew she should have already started packing for the big move but there wasn't really all that much to pack- she looked around the room that she was currently sharing with Ellie. Whilst Ellie had about ten large boxes filled with clothes, books, DVDs etc. Jana's clothes and books and things would have fit mostly into her old rucksack (the one which she used to have in the wild) and would have probably taken up two boxes worth of space at the most.

Still, she couldn't find a good outfit. She supposed she always ask Ellie or Maddy, they were about the same size as her, but this wasn't just about finding the right outfit for a movie night or even a date. This outfit had to be spectacular, after all, Jana thought she was hoping that that night would be incredibly spectacular.

Jana couldn't help smiling to herself but as she heard heavy footsteps on the stairs, probably Aran's or her father's, she pretended to be packing her clothes away. She knew, unlike the others- including even Rhydian- why Aran would never be interested in Ellie, it was more than just an age thing, but she wasn't sure if Aran wanted everyone else to know that- wild wolfbloods tended to have very conservative opinions on those kinds of matters.

"What you doing?" Maddy asked as she pocked her head around the door, "Do you need any help?"

"I need an outfit for tonight," Jana confessed.

"Why don't you ask Ellie if you can borrow one of her dresses?" Maddy suggested, "I bet she's got stuff in those boxes that's never been worn. Or you can always borrow something of mine."

"It's not like that, Maddy," Jana tried to explain, "It's need to be something extra special. It's not really something I can talk to Ellie about."

Maddy nodded understandingly, "I think I know what you're on about. You know you can talk to me about anything, Jana, we're pretty much sisters considering I'm going to be married to Rhydian soon."

Jana smiled, "Ok, I have absolutely no idea what I'm doing. I just feel so nervous."

"I'll help you," Maddy said holding out a hand, "Come on, everything will be fine."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

Jana stared at herself in the mirror wondering who she was looking at. She was wearing a sparkly blue strapless dress that came down to just above her knees and a pair of knee high dark black leather boots, her hair was pulled up into a half-up half-down style and her curls were soften into delicate waves. She wore way more makeup than she usually would- her eyes heavy with mascara and eyeliner and a delicate amount of navy blue eyeshadow, she wore just a hint of blusher and sparkly cheery lip-gloss.

"Wow!" Jana said, "Thanks so much, Maddy."

"Don't forget the M&amp;Ms," Maddy said, putting a small box into Jana's handbag.

"I think I should be the one telling you that Maddy," Jana joked.

"Oh, ha ha," Maddy said rolling her eyes, "Actually it was Rhydian's fault, can't rely on him to remember anything, can we?"

As if on cue, Rhydian appeared at the door.

"Bit harsh, Maddy," Rhydian said, "Although I am being punished for my mistakes every day now."

"Rhydian, I let you have a chocolate cake earlier today," Maddy said, "I'm hardly punishing you."

Rhydian walked over and kissed Maddy on the cheek, "I suffer for all the right reasons though."

"I'm still here guys!" Jana replied.

"Where are you off to?" Rhydian asked, getting a sneaky suspicion as to what was going to happen that night. He was torn between locking Jana in the den before Xander arrived and accepting that Jana wasn't a little cub and that to be honest all of them had been waiting for weeks for this day to arrive.

"Xander said that one his favourite bands is playing at some pub in Newcastle," Jana said, a little too nonchalantly hoping that her cover story wouldn't slip. In truth, she was going to be spending the whole night over at Xander's flat.

"Right," Rhydian said disbelievingly, "I guess that's why your purse is rattling."

"They're tic-tacs," Jana said, "Honestly, Rhydian."

"You hate tic-tacs," Rhydian said.

"Not the strawberry ones," Jana argued, knowing it was a blatant lie and that Rhydian knew that too.

"You should have said they were paracetamols," Rhydian said, "Might have believed you."

"Why can I keep nothing from you?" Jana asked in despair.

"Because I'm annoyingly overprotective older brother who's just looking out for his little sister," Rhydian said hugging Jana, "Although, he is currently on hiatus, have a good night, but I only want to see the two of you tomorrow morning, understand?"

Jana nodded, "Xander's not you, Rhydian."

"I don't think wolfbloods and humans have to actually worry about that anyway," Rhydian said, "According to what your father's been yapping on about. You know he's only going easy on Xander at the moment because of Elgar. It seems that planning battles can distract your father from anything. Just watch out for Elgar tonight though, he'd be most likely to attack when there's only a couple of us, just keep an eye out, yeah?"

"And my big brother returns from hiatus, five seconds later," Jana said, "I wouldn't trust my father's knowledge of wolfblood-human relationships, I think we all know that's he's never dated a human, so he's hardly an authority on that matter. And yes I will watch out for evil Elgar, I'll have all my wolfblood senses primed for detecting the evil dude."

The doorbell rang and Maddy looked out the window.

"He's here," Maddy said, "Now don't be nervous, it'll be great. I'm sure that Xander will know what to do."

"I don't think he's ever done it before," Jana admitted.

"I find that hard to believe," Maddy said, "I mean, you'd think he'd have all the girls chasing after him."

"No, I'm his first girlfriend," Jana said.

"Wow," Maddy said, "Maybe he's just one of the guys who really knows what he wants, doesn't have to date loads of girls to find out who's right for him."

"Stop trying to compare Xander to me," Rhydian protested, "Xander's far more innocent than I am."

"You don't need to tell either of us that," Jana said, "Hey, Rhydian, watch the hair, now's not the time for all of that."

"Sorry, sis," Rhydian said before pulling a funny face, "Can you imagine what you'll be like on your wedding day?"

"You'll completely stressed out," Maddy said.

"Not funny, guys," Jana said, "I hope you're cubs aren't going to be as irritating as you, Rhydian."

"I wouldn't bank on that, Jana," Rhydian said, "It won't be too long before you and Xander will have your own little red and black haired fluff-balls running around creating havoc anyway."

"Not if my father's right," Jana said worriedly.

"Like you said what does your Dad know about humans and wolfbloods?" Rhydian said, "I'll go and tell Xander you'll be down soon."

Jana nodded gratefully.

"Maddy," Jana said in a tiny voice, "Does it hurt a lot?"

"Not that much," Maddy admitted, "And Xander seems like a more gentle kind of guy so you should be fine. You can always tell him to stop if it's too much for you, and I know he'll listen to you. If he doesn't, you have every right to kill him. But this is Xander we're on about, so that'll never happen."

Jana smiled, "I'm sure I'll be fine, just nerves I guess."

"It's a big day," Maddy said, "It's ok to be a little scared."

"I shouldn't be," Jana said, "In the pack, it's not even like you usually get to choose when or who with, it's all arranged marriages and the like. I should be glad that I'm getting the opportunity to choose."

"Yeah, the pack sounds like hell," Maddy said, "But everyone gets nervous their first time."

"I hope everything goes ok," Jana said.

"It will," Maddy said, "Now go on, have fun."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

Jana was curled up next to Xander on the sofa, her head lying on his chest, her eyes dropping. As much as she hadn't minded being a vegetarian for the past few days, there was nothing quite like chicken curry and a huge slice of chocolate cake. She missed unhealthy food, with Maddy around the kitchen had undergone a massive transformation and she'd had to hide her packets of fizzy worms in her bedroom and Xander's car to avoid them being thrown out. The past few days she'd been eating nothing but fruit and veg and ridiculous amounts of caramelised onion hummus and pitta bread. If she saw another chickpea she'd cry.

"You still awake?" Xander asked, and Jana nodded slightly, burrowing her head into his chest.

"Liar," Xander said, as he turned down the volume on the TV. The movie had been one of those ones that was on every week, but it was one of Xander's favourites and he'd wanted Jana to see it. Of course, it was the kind of movie girls weren't really into- but Jana had like the sword fighting scenes even if she'd slept through most of the rest of it.

Xander began to tickle Jana until she was roaring with laughter.

"Stop, Xander, please," Jana said between laughs before reaching up to put her arms around his neck and kiss him.

The kiss was eager and passionate, and spoke of their impatience. It was late and they'd be expected back at the house in a few hours. They were both out of breath when they'd finished kissing.

"Are you sure, Jana?" Xander asked.

"Yes, definitely," Jana said, as she slipped her hands underneath of Xander's shirt and touched his smooth chest. She felt like the luckiest girl alive. She pulled the shirt off over his head and was blissfully surprised at what she saw. It had never occurred to her before that someone who did martial arts could be that muscular, but of course it made perfect sense, Xander looked like one of those models on calendars or on those strange perfume commercials. She couldn't believe that he was all hers.

Xander kissed her eagerly but tenderly, his fingers entwined in her hair. She reached up to wrap her legs around his waist, earning a nervous giggle from Xander. He moved his hands down her back until he found the zip of her dress. Jana kissed him eagerly and told him to go on.

It didn't take them long to be completely rid of their clothes and they were in awe at the sight of each other's' bodies.

Xander grabbed something from behind him, "Are you definitely sure about this Jana?"

Jana nodded, although she was a little nervous but she tried to not think about the pain. Instead she wrapped her fingers in Xander's hair and kissed him, losing herself in kissing.

There was a little pain at first, but not as much as Jana expected, she overwhelmed by happiness and lost herself to language of kisses- slow and tender kisses, quick and passionate kisses- each one telling her how much she need him and how much he needed her. His hands moved gently caressing her and helping her to feel calm and she knew that she could trust him, she could trust him more than anyone she'd even know in her life. And he could trust her too in the same way.

When they were finished they lay next to each other wrapped in each other's arms and listening to each other's breathing and fast heart beats. Knowing that everything had changed for them, and that they would never forget that night.


	21. Chapter 21

"Do we have to?" Jana complained, holding Xander's hand in hers. They had just returned to the house and were sat in the car watch as the sun was beginning to rise above the fields. They hadn't wanted the night to end but they were expected back at the house. There was only one day until they were due to move into the flat and they also were expecting to meet Ellie's social worker later that day.

"Unfortunately," Xander said, squeezing Jana's hand, "Otherwise they'll send out a search party and they won't be very impressed if they're panicking thinking Elgar's kidnapped you and instead just find us- you know."

"I wish they'd just leave us alone sometimes," Jana sulked, "It would be nice to spend more time with you alone. We can't even be alone at work anymore now that they've hired more people to our team."

"That's only because everything think we spend the whole time kissing," Xander said.

"Well yes, we kind of do," Jana admitted, "But we do actually do work… occasionally. Anyway after last night we will be doing a lot more than kissing now."

"I'm pretty sure they think we're doing that during work hours too," Xander added cheekily.

Jana playfully hit Xander, "Could you not? My dad can probably hear you right now. I'm sure he probably know we've already arrived."

"How likely is he to kill me?" Xander asked.

"Very," Jana admitted glumly, looking down at the oversized t shirt she'd borrowed from Xander, she loved how his scent clung to it- the smell of the woods mixed with the seaside, "But don't worry I'll protect you."

"His little cubs is growing up," Xander said, "It's not going to be easy for him."

"If Mum was still alive she'd be happy for us," Jana said, "I know she would, she'd make my father back off."

"Do you think that if your mum was still alive that'd she'd live in the wild with your dad or as a tame wolfblood?" Xander asked.

Jana shrugged, "I haven't thought about that. It might seem crazy but Mum was always very interested in the human world, it didn't scare her at all. Before Rhydian and I were taken from the pack as cubs she was constantly nagging my father to let her take me to human world. Rhydian was allowed to visit the human world- back in those days my father wasn't so strict about human contact, beta wolves- healers and members of the council of elders- were allowed to visit the towns and take their children there to see what human life was like. Mostly it was to show the cubs that our way of life was far better than life in the human world- not that it always taught them that. As an alpha's daughter I wasn't allowed to see the human world, it would have jeopardised the pack's safety and reputation if I became too attached to that way of life. Of course, I am a tame now, despite everything that my father wanted for me."

Xander smiled, "I guess things really have changed in the pack. Your father is letting a human live with them now, I never thought he would do that."

Jana sighed, "As far as the rest of the pack is concerned Meinir will be treat like untested obligate, just running errands in the human world, probably not allowed to be a member of the council. It's not like she's going back to the life she just left, according to Aran their gang has a new leader now. The gang used to mean everything to Meinir- even if they were just a sadistic bunch of twenty-something year olds who like to terrorise the cubs and refused to listen to elders."

"How old are Aran and Meinir?" Xander asked.

"Meinir's ten years older than me, so she's twenty-six, almost twenty seven now," Jana replied, "And Aran's three years younger than her, so he's twenty-four."

"Well I'll have to tell Ellie it's completely out of the question," Xander said, "She's not dating someone who's nearly a decade older than her."

"You needn't worry," Jana said, "Aran's not interested in Ellie."

Xander gave her a quizzical look, "I thought he was, I mean just a little bit."

"No, Aran's just overprotective," Jana said, "He's spent his whole life looking after me, even if sometimes it didn't seem like that because Meinir was constantly getting him into trouble. I think he just sees Ellie as being like a human version of me, and so he just protects her the way he protects me."

"It's good to know that," Xander said, "I was half expecting to be locking him that shed at the bottom of garden."

"Please, don't," Jana protested, "I've been locked in there before, it's not very nice. There's loads of spiders in there, and I don't even mind spiders. Of course, Meinir is absolutely petrified of spiders, but I didn't tell you that ok?"

Xander laughed, "Ok. Now come on we should go inside."

Alric growled as his daughter and her boyfriend approached the house. There was only one explanation as to what had happened the night before- no one would dress up like Jana had for any other reason. Alric wanted to kill the human boy- they might do things like in the human world but in the wolfblood world there were rules and ceremonies- the boy hadn't even made a formal declaration! They hadn't even arranged any wedding plans, and yet he'd already overstepped the mark by doing something like that before Jana and Xander were properly married.

"Hi, Dad," Jana said in cheerful tone, her cheeks red no doubt from the cold.

"Hi, Jana," Alric said, making a deliberate point of ignoring Xander. At least the boy was quiet, the same couldn't be said for his irritating little sister- Alric was half tempted to propose a union between Ellie and Bryn just as revenge for being hounded with questions about pack life.

"Hello, Alric," Xander said, feeling like he was being rude by not addressing Jana's father as Mr. something.

Alric grunted a reply.

"Hello, you two," Ellie said as ran down the stairs, "I trust you had a good night. I'm going to made pancakes, anyone want any?"

Jana and Xander nodded eagerly.

"Oh, of course you two do," Ellie said, "Do you think I should make any for Alice?"

"Who's Alice?" Jana asked.

"Her social worker," Xander replied, "You should meet her."

"I can't," Jana said, "I've got to go to work. Just promise me you'll do everything you can to make sure that Ellie can live with us at the flat."

"Of course," Xander said, "I can't think of anywhere else they'd send her."

"Neither can I," Jana said, "But I'm still worried."

"Don't," Xander replied, "Everything will be ok."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

"Do you want some tea, Alice?" Ellie asked her social worker, who had arrived only a few minutes earlier, "Ceri should have bought some herbal tea when she went shopping earlier, let me just find it."

Alice smiled, "So do you like living here?"

"Yeah, definitely," Ellie said excitedly, "It can be a bit mad sometimes, Maddy and Rhydian, Ceri and Gerwyn's son and his fiancé, they're staying over the moment and so are some of Gerwyn's relatives but they're all going to be leaving at some point during the next month. Then it'll be real quiet, it'll be quite strange, I'll miss them. Ah, here it is!"

"Have you ever considered staying here rather than with your brother?" Alice asked.

"A little bit," Ellie admitted, as she switched on the kettle, "Not that I would want to impose on Ceri and Gerwyn's hospitality. But I'm a teenager and yeah I guess teachers and matron and the nurses were a little like parents but real parents, I'm not sure I could go back to all of that. It's not that I just want my own way, it's just that I've grown up being used to it just being Xander and I- we're both very independent now. I think it will be great living with Jana and Xander, certainly good preparing for when I go to uni."

"Yes, but I'm wondering if having a parent figure in your life might be good for you," Alice said.

"Well, it's not like I'm going to living miles away for Ceri and Gerwyn, they are great parent figures," Ellie explained, "They said we're allowed to come over any time we like and that we can talk to them about anything, and they're always inviting everyone over for dinner anyway. It'll be almost as if I'm still living here I bet."

"Well the thing is there have been other offers," Alice explained carefully, "We are aware of what happen at Segolia and we've been in contact with them- a small admin mix up I believe, you shouldn't have technically been allowed to take part in the trials, you're too young but I'm glad to see that the treatment has been so effective and worked so quickly. We originally were hoping to get you into a private boarding school up here, closer to your brother, but still offering the save level of education that you were receiving at your old school, see we're worried that letting you attend an ordinary comprehensive will hold you back. There was one suitable school but there was no spaces, see joining a school in year eleven, even with your grades, isn't an easy thing to do. We then contacted Bradlington High, naturally considering you're close friends of many of the ex-pupils and considering your grades they were more than happy to accept you, however many of the subjects you are currently taking are taught by different exam boards, some topics you've studied are relevant, others are not. You'll have a lot of work to catch up on."

"So will I be going to Bradlington High?" Ellie asked excitedly, "You don't need to worry too much I finished GCSE maths and English last year, and I was doing GCSE English Literature outside of school hours so I'm sure my tutor could probably email me the rest of the work perhaps. I could always use the free lessons to catch up on work."

"French, political sciences and history were the only subjects effected," Alice explained, "Of course, your history teacher, Mr Jeffries, is a good friend of the family I've been told, I'm sure you won't fall to far behind. But there's still the matter of where you will live."

"At the flat," Ellie said in confusion, "With Xander and Jana."

"We don't think that would be suitable," Alice explained, "Well, actually, they don't think it's suitable, I think it would be perfectly fine for someone as independent as you, but it went to a vote and that's the decision they made."

"Why?" Ellie asked, "What was their reasoning? Xander's always been there for me, Jana's like a sister to me, if anyone understands about the things I've been through its them. Yeah, Xander can't cook, but Jana can a bit and I can cook fairly well, we're not going to starve or get fat. Xander's never been behind on bills even when money's been tight, not that that happens too often, Segolia pays him very well. If anything Xander is too much like an adult- he's all no dating anyone expect your best friend until your eighteen, no chocolate more than twice a week, make sure you're in bed by half nine and worst of all he absolutely insists on being a chaperone at every school dance I go to, I don't anyone who does that anymore."

Alice laughed, "It's not anything that Xander or Jana did. They passed the assessments with flying colours. We just feel that there's been a better offer."

"Who?" Ellie asked doubtfully.

"There's a woman called Jane Vilkas," Alice said, "She usually fosters younger children with behavioural difficulties. You might have heard of her actually."

"Jana and Rhydian," Ellie said, "So that's where Jana's surname came from."

"Yes, she kept the surname when her traveller community took her back and disappeared," Alice admitted, "We were surprised when she returned to Stoneybridge eleven years later, not quite as surprised as when we learnt that Jana and Rhydian weren't actually siblings. It wasn't until Gerwyn tried to get custody of his son- hearing that he'd been taken into care- of course we said no, Rhydian was quite settled in foster care at that time, and Gerwyn, well he'd just left the traveller community and was still adjusting to life. We let Rhydian change his surname to his father's of course, we thought it would help him better develop his sense of identity. We always intended for him to meet his father later on, of course we never expected Gerwyn to marry Jana's mother- but I guess that's just the way things work out sometimes."

"I don't want to live with Jane," Ellie protested, "I know a lot of care kids argue about their placements but this is different. Jane had no love for Jana, and what with Jana dating my brother, I'm scared she won't let me see them. I've heard about Jane from what Jana can recall and from what Rhydian's shown me of his social service notes- she was described as 'ill-equipped to deal with children with strong and wilful personalities'- well that's me isn't it. I don't want to live with someone like that. What about the Vaughans have you asked them?"

"The Vaughans only foster boys unfortunately," Alice asked, "And they said that now they had two younger children they felt they weren't ready to foster another child. I did ask them, explain that you know Rhydian."

Ellie sulked, as she heard the backdoor open and Xander entered.

"I thought you weren't going to be here until two," Xander said as he walked in with a shocked look on his face, "But I could bearing cookies and doughnuts, just don't tell Maddy ok?"

Ellie smiled, "Maddy's going to have twins in about six months' time but she's already started making us eat healthy. You should have seen the look on Gerwyn and Rhydian's faces when she told them they had to start eating lean meat, it's like they thought that lean meat wasn't proper meat and that it was in some way contaminated!"

Alice smiled, "It does sound like you've had a great time here. But I'm sure you'll have a great time at Jane Vilkas's too."

Xander dropped a bowl and it shattered on the floor, "What do you mean Jane Vilkas? Do you have no idea about how badly she treated Jana in the past?"

"Xander, Jane has undergone training since then," Alice explained, "In fact, she would like to meet Jana so that she make amends for the way she treated her in the past."

Xander scoffed, shaking his head, "Why can't Ellie live with Jana and I?"

"She needs a mother figure in her life," Alice argued.

"But I have Ceri," Ellie argued, "And there's Miss Sweeney and Becca."

"We mean 24/7," Alice clarified.

"The flat's only ten minutes away from here," Ellie said, "I don't understand any of this. What do you think social services is trying to achieve by doing this? By all means let Jana and Jane have their little family get together if that's going to make her feel better, but don't expect it to fix anything. I'm not going to live Jane, and that's that."

"If you don't agree we will get a court order," Alice said, "Ellie, I don't think it's really advisable to pursue that course of action."

"But you said yourself," Ellie began, "You said you were more than happy for me to live with Xander and Jana, why not defy them and let me live with my brother?"

"It doesn't work like that," Alice said, "Rules are rules unfortunately, I'm so sorry, Ellie."

Ellie felt her eyes burn with tears and ran upstairs. There was only one thing she could do, if living with her brother and Jana, or Jana's family wasn't a possibility, she wasn't just going to be sent anywhere.

She collided into Aran in the hallway.

"Ellie, are you ok?" Aran asked, his voice filled with concern.

"When are you guys leaving?" Ellie asked, trying to keep her voice calm.

"Tonight, sunset," Aran explained, "Why? Elllie, what are you up to? I couldn't help but overhear the conversation downstairs, the decision will be overturned I'm sure."

"It doesn't work like that here," Ellie said, "Let me go with you, please. I'm asking you because you'll understand."

Aran hugged to younger girl, "Xander would kill me for agreeing with this, and Jana too. I can't do this, Ellie. How long until you turn sixteen?"

"Seven months," Ellie said, failing to hold back tears, "I know I'll be able to do what I want then but…"

"You're just like Jana," Aran said, "Stubborn, wilful, headstrong, you can't stand being told you've got to do something you don't want to do. All the qualities of a true leader. You'll go far, Ellie, I know you will, and those seven months will be nothing more than a faded memory by the time you go off to college. Trust me, study hard, devote your time to that and your reading, distract yourself and time will move faster, I promise you."

"I've never told anyone this," Ellie said, "But I actually hate school. I really do, the only reason why I study so hard is because life is cruel. You know everyone was so shocked that my grades shot up once I was taken into foster care, most kids in my situation would have just given up, but it showed me that life is ridiculous cruel sometimes and that you've just got to do as much as you can to survive. The difference between here and the wild is that, whilst life is cruel in both places, if you try hard here you can still fail, you can have everything and know everything and that can still not be enough, in the wild, at least from what I can tell, if you know something and you're able to do it, that's usually enough to see you through. I've always been enchanted by the idea of living the kind of life you lead, ever since I read about the hippie subculture a few years ago, I know I'm not a wolfblood like you but I think I'm stubborn enough to make things work."

"Ellie," Aran said, "I know you could make it work, but your brother would never allow it. The pack isn't just a nice little place, what if you made a mistake and got exiled, you'd be expected to find your way back here all on your own. You might act like Jana, but you are not Jana. Can you find your way without a compass? Do you know which berries are poisonous or not? Do you know how to find fresh clean water or build a shelter with your bare hands? No, I thought not, well Jana knew that before she turned three, so you can understand that there's really too much for you to learn."

Ellie felt her face crumble, tears spilling down her cheeks, "But Jane was horrible to Jana. What if she's horrible to me, or she doesn't let me see them? What if they try to make me stay with her until I turn eighteen?"

"You'll survive it," Aran said, "We have a saying in our pack, cryfder yn dod o'n eiliadau gwannaf, strength comes from our weakest moments. It means that no matter how many horrible things you experience each one of them will make you stronger later on."

"I still know what I want," Ellie said.

"I think this is about more than just the pack, isn't it Ellie?" Aran asked, "I'm sorry Ellie, but there are somethings we can't hand in life not because life is cruel, but because the gods are cruel and they make it so that we can't have the things that other people have."

Ellie looked at him puzzled, "What do you mean?"

"Only Meinir and Jana know," Aran said, "And the only reason Jana knows is because she has an amazing memory- I wasn't expecting a four year cub to remember something like that, or even know what it meant. Ellie, you're beautiful and wonderful, and I've seen plenty of girls who are crushing on guys to know that's what going on now with you, and I promise you that one day you'll find the right guy- I said the same thing to Jana when Rhydian was exiled and look at what happened. I just can't be that perfect guy for you, I can't be that perfect guy for any girl."

Ellie nodded in understanding, she knew that it hadn't been an easy thing for Aran to tell her.

"I'll stay or I'll try to," Ellie said.

"If they stop you seeing Xander and Jana then head for a place called Cadir Idris," Aran said, "The pack will be there until February. We'll sort out getting you back in touch with your brother and his wife."

"Xander's not married," Ellie said smiling, "I think Xander doesn't have the audacity to get married without letting me help with the planning."

"I'm sorry," Aran said, "In the pack, the wedding ceremony is a formality, it's when a couple... you know... for the first that they are considered married."

"I wonder how everyone knows that's what happened last night," Ellie said.

"Jana hates makeup," Aran explained, "Her favourite jumper is that old blue she wears all the time that's got more holes in it than that strange cheese that Gerwyn likes. Her boots, she wears them pretty much all the time- and you can tell. I think it was kind of obvious that something was going on, but it wasn't until I saw how smug she was this morning that I knew for certain. It's hard watching your little alpha grow up so quickly."

"She's like a little sister to you," Ellie said.

"Yes, and not just a sweet little sister," Aran said, "We used to constantly play pranks on each other, get into fights, she was a real little sister to me and Meinir. Not that May would ever admit that."

Ellie smiled.

"Good luck," Aran said, ruffling Ellie's hair.

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

It wasn' t until after Alice had left that he noticed that his hand was bleeding, well it had been Ceri who noticed.

Xander sat at the kitchen table as Ceri carefully pulled the shattered cermic out of his hand and cleaned the cuts with some kind of natural disinfectant before covering them in some kind of herb paste and wrapping his hand in bandages.

He didn't want to cry but how could they be so unfair? It was almost like they were deliberately trying to find any way possible to keep him and his sister apart.

He felt tears slip down his cheeks, and Ceri hugged him. It had been a long time since he'd had a mother and he certain wasn't as close to Ceri as Jana and Ellie were but for the first time in years it felt like the part of him that knew what it was like to have a mother was alive again and happy again. It was like it was a butterfly that had spent years and years as a miserable caterpillar eating just enough leaves to keep ticking alone and these past months it had transformed and now it was ready to fly.

He had no idea what he was going to do but at least he wasn't going to be alone.

Ceri sniffed the air delicately, almost believing that her senses were lying to her. But she looked up through the kitchen window and couldn't believe her eyes. She watched in horror and happiness as the dark haired teenagers burst through the door carrying a small baby wrapped in a thin green blanket.

"He's coming," Bryn said before collapsing.


	22. Chapter 22

Xander held the little baby in his arms as Jana sung quietly, hoping that the little girl would eventually stop crying. He couldn't believe how small the girl was- she must have been born several months premature- and she looked so fragile. Something was clearly wrong with her, although her dark eyes were bright and alert and her head was covered in short tufts of black hair.

"What should we name her?" Ellie asked, as she help Ceri treat Bryn's wounds. He had a large cut across his stomach and his right ankle was dislocate, there was a bump of the back of his too which look painful and severe.

"She might already have a name," Ceri said, "We need to ask Bryn when he wakes up."

"What I want to know is who her parents are?" Gerwyn asked, "If Bryn…"

"He's too young, isn't he?" Ellie asked, "He's way too young to be a father."

"He's thirteen," Ceri replied, "The wild most wolfbloods marry around the age eleven or twelve, although they don't usually consummate the marriage until they're a few years older- it depends on the alpha, Alric was never particularly strict, and Jana tried to scrap the whole marriage tradition entirely."

"Good for you," Ellie said to Jana.

Jana smiled, "It's such a backwards thing. You agree with me don't you, Octavia?"

"Who's Octavia?" Ceri asked in confusion.

Xander rolled his eyes, "Why did I let you watch that show?"

Ellie laughed, "Octavia. It seems like a good name. I bet you she's got a tradition welsh name that I'll never be able to pronounce."

Octavia gurgled before yelling again.

"I think she's hungry," Rhydian said as he entered the kitchen.

"Do all cubs get like that when they're hungry?" Xander asked.

"Jana did," Gerwyn said, "Used to wake up the whole camp. Apart from that she's sleep like death and never even grizzle- poor Aran used to think that Jana had died and told Alric only to find she was completely fast asleep."

"What do cubs eat?" Xander asked.

"Well," Jana replied, grabbing a blender and a packet of mince from the fridge, "Meat smoothies should do it."

Ellie made a gagging noise, "Or Octavia could just drink soya milk."

"She's not flipping called Octavia," a raspy voice said, "And she won't like your stinking human milk."

"Bryn," Ceri said, trying to held back tears, "How are you?"

Rhydian rushed to the table to take Bryn's hand, it was ice cold and pale.

"I'm fine but it doesn't matter," Bryn said, gasping for breath, "Elgar is coming. I did something terrible and I had to warn you that he was coming for your pack. He's got an army- an army of obligates. The spy, he has a spy in Segolia, you know him, he's very bad. He destroyed who I am. Then Elgar made me marry an obligate girl- he wanted to know if werewolves and humans could have children. They can't but marked obligates and wolfbloods can, so can obligates and humans and werewolves and wolfbloods. He said he knew Arianne, knew her dark secret."

Bryn winced in pain and Gerwyn took his hand.

"Who are you?" Bryn asked.

"Your father," Gerwyn replied, for once serious, and trying to hold back tears, "I'm sorry I wasn't there for you before son. I really am."

"Please look after her," Bryn said barely above a whisper, "Please look after my daughter, Olwenna."

"You're not leaving us," Rhydian said adamantly, aware that Jana was at his side, holding baby Olwenna and crying loudly

"You can't leave us, my beautiful boy," Ceri said, crying hysterically.

"Efallai y byddwn yn cwrdd yn y bywyd nesaf, a gaf fi ymadael rhydd, bendithion fod ar fy nheulu a phecyn," Bryn said, saying the traditional farewell saying, before his eyes closed.

"NO!" Ceri yelled bursting into tears.

The smell of danger literally wafted into the house.

"We're under attack!" Alric yelled, running into the house followed by Aran, as in the distance there was the sound of shouts and screams.

"Ellie," Aran said, "Go upstairs, stay there with the cubs, Maddy and Meinir until I tell you its safe."

"Aran," Ellie said.

"Ellie, please," Aran said, "And take the- wait there's a baby?- take the cub with you."

Ellie nodded obediently.

"Now it's time to prove your worth," Alric said to Xander, "Can you fight?"

"Well-," Xander said.

"Dad, no," Jana protested.

Xander grabbed a knife from the kitchen, "I studied shortsword. It can't be too different from fighting with kitchen knives."

"Xander, please," Jana begged, "If you got hurt, or... I can't lose you."

Xander kissed Jana on the lips, not caring what her father would think, the kiss was passionate and desparate and felt like a goodbye but with an awful lot of hope of hope poured into it.

Xander took Jana's hand in his, "We'll both be ok, I promise."

"You don't have to do this," Jana said, "You can stay with the others."

"You can too, Jana," Xander said, "But you're not going too and neither am I."

"I can protect her, Xander," Rhydian said, wiping the tears from his eyes, "If that's what you're worried about, I can look after her."

"Give me a minute," Xander said, grabbing several more knives for the the draw and running upstairs.

"Xander," Ellie said, "What's going on?"

"Take these," Xander said passing the knives to Ellie.

"But I can't fight," Ellie protested.

"But you can throw a cup of punch in a guy's face even with zero coordination," Xander said, "Use them as throwing knives. If the wolves come into the house, don't hestitate."

"But what if it's Jana or her pack?" Ellie asked, "How am I supposed to tell?"

"Trust you'll be able to tell," Xander said, "And Meinir and the cubs will help you."

"Xander," Ellie said, hugging Xander, "Be safe."

"I will," Xander replied.

Jana watched in horror as about twenty wolves and fifty or so humans sprung across the fields heading directly for the house. The humans were most dressed in rags, brandishing hammers and spears and axes. There was no way that her pack would win. She looked around at her family, both biological and adopted- Ceri and Gerwyn and Alric, her parents, Aran and Rhydian, her brothers, and Xander, wonderful, loving, brilliant Xander, who would literally do anything for her.

Jana clung to Xander's side, knowing that everything was pointless and that it was all over. Xander buried his head in her hair breathing in her scent savouring every last breath that he could get. He thought about his sister upstairs, startled at how terrified she must be. It seemed so cruel that someone so vibrant and determined to live a brilliant life would leave the world like this.

Rhydian bit his lip as he thought of Maddy and his upborn cubs- they had only recently decided on names- Adrian and Cassidy. He wanted to be with her but he knew that he had to try to fight to protect her however futile that might be, if he just went upstairs and stayed there it would be like surrendering and he wouldn't do that, no matter how much he wanted to spend his final moments with them. He looked at his father and mother and his sister and brother- there was so much pain in the world, so many cruel people. Why did Elgar have to do this?

Gerwyn looked briefly at Bryn, before turning away knowing that if he didn't he would collapse there and then. His little boy, his little son that he hadn't even know existed until a few months ago... his life taken away for nothing more than petty revenge. He looked at Ceri, his soulmate, and at Rhydian and Jana, his children. He wanted them to have the best lives anyone could ever wish for but he didn't know if wishing would do them any good now.

Ellie and Maddy watched out of the window as the rival army jumped the low fence and were only metres away from the house. Even Meinir was crying in fear, whispering her brother's name over and over again. Olwenna was silent as if expecting the worst and the cubs stood behind the girls, their hands clasped together, knowing they would never leave each other's side.

Ellie worried about Xander and Jana. They were her family and she never wanted to love them. She worried about Aran too, she wanted to be there fighting alongside him.

Maddy agonised as she thought about Rhydian waiting downstairs, but she knew she had to keep their cubs safe, she put her hand over the slight bump- they were already so big!- wishing there was someway they could all survive.

Aran looked around the kitchen at his pack. His little Jana, she tried to be so brave, but it was clear that she was terrified. He wanted to protect her, to wrap her up in a little blanket like he did when she was a little baby cub and make her smile and laugh and to take her away from the awful and dreadful world, he was glad she had Xander. He looked at Rhydian, the boy he had dispised for so long, they weren't at all close, but they were friends, and he meant so much to Jana. He looked at Ceri, who had been a mother to him, and Alric, who had guided him for so many years. He thought of Meinir upstairs, feeling a pang at not being able to protect his sister who he'd sworn as a five year old to protect for ever and ever and ever until she'd giggled and told him she'd always love and protect him too. Her thought of little Ellie, the girl who loved him, who he wished he could love in that way, the girl who had such a bright future ahead of her.

Ceri looked at Bryn, remembering the day he was born, his first step, the way he used to play fight with Jana and nap in the afternoon sun. She couldn't believe he'd been a father and that now he was... She couldn't believe she was losing the rest of her family too.

The wolves were almost at the front door and they stood ready to attack. Jana and the other wolfbloods transformed, her father- the largest by far blocking the door. Rhydian stood on her left and Xander on her right and she remember a moment in one of their English classes- Romeo and Juliet. She remembered that it was the day that her father had come to take her back to the wild, and to make Rhydian beg for forgiveness, she remembered looking up at Rhydian as the teacher talked about the love of Romeo and Juliet healing the feud between the families- she hadn't know then that Romeo and Juliet was a tragedy and that the young couple never got their happy ever after. She had wished that she would have her happy ever after with Xander and that Rhydian would have his happy ever after with Maddy, but it looked like they were all going to be sad Romeos and Juliets- dying with the hope that one day the feud between the packs might end.

The first wolf pounced up the steps.

That was when the firing started.

Ellie glanced out of the window to see the black clad figures jump out the trees, there must have been at least thirty of them, all with guns. Segolia, she knew instantly that the gunmen had come from Segolia. It was carnage outside and she could barely bare to watch. The obligates fell to the ground, one by one as the wolves darted this way and that. She knew the guns were loaded with tranquilisers, not actually bullets, but it looked looked a battlefield pilled with the bodies of the dead.

She heard a growl behind her and expect it to be Jana, coming to tell them that it was over and that it was going to be safe. But as she turned around she saw dark brown eyes and thick dark fur. Not Alric, not Aran. She threw the knife as the wolf pounced and Maddy moved to protect the cubs and Meinir. The knife stuck in the wolf's torso and it yelped in pain, but it only made it more ferocious. Ellie threw the next knife aiming for one the legs hoping to injury it enough so that it was unable to walk. Instead it hit it's rib cage, cutting deep. The wolf transformed back into human form.

The man let out a haggard laugh, "You think you've won, stupid human. But he'll never stop. I might be dead. I might not be able to take what was rightfully mine but Alex with never stop."

"Elgar?" Maddy asked in shock, "Are you Elgar?"

The man nodded taking a gasping breath and then he fell back against the carpet, dead.

Ellie grabbed a nearby wastebin, vomiting loudly and violently.

"I killed him, I killed him Maddy," Ellie said, "I'm a monster."

"You did what you had to," Meinir said, "He was going to kill us. He was going to kill the cubs. He was the monster."

"Where are the others?" Ellie asked, panicked, "Maddy can you tell?"

Maddy sniffed the air, tears filling her eyes and spilling down her cheeks.

"They're gone."


	23. Chapter 23

Ellie heard footsteps on the stairs and grabbed one of the knives from where it had fallen on the floor and moved so that Maddy, Meinir and the cubs were behind her.

"Give me one of those," Meinir said, gesturing towards the other knife that was wedged between Elgar's ribs, "All right don't."

"But you're human," Cadwr protested.

"I still know the theory of fighting," Meinir replied, "Even if I'm not as strong as I used to be."

"Where could they be?" Maddy agonised, "It's too quiet. It's really too quiet. Oh my God! No, no! Please, God no!"

"Maddy!" Ellie yelled, "Can you tell anything about the people in the house now?"

"They're wolfblood," Maddy said still hyperventilating.

"Can you use Eolas?" Ellie asked.

Maddy shock her head, "I used to, but not anymore- my parents were totally against it. And you can't use it in a house anyway."

Ellie sighed, "Just stay behind me."

They listened as the stair creaked and Ellie crouched, ready to spring. She darted forward as she saw a flash of black hair.

"Ellie! Stop!" Miss Sweeney yelled, grabbing Ellie's arm, "It's safe, you're all going to be safe."

The knife fell out of Ellie's hand falling loudly onto the floor and she flung herself into Miss Sweeney's arms crying.

"It's all going to be ok," Miss Sweeney said, comforting the young girl.

"I killed him," Ellie said between gasping breath, "I…"

"Is everyone ok?" Miss Sweeney asked.

"As it's possible to be when a loony wild wolfblood decides to attack your family," Meinir said, "None of us are injured if that's what you mean. What about the others?"

"They're being treated by our doctor," Miss Sweeney explained, "Ceri, Alric and Aran were completely ok- nothing more than scratches. Gerwyn- the stupid fool decided to try to attack one of the wolfs with a sandwich toaster- we think he's a got a sprained wrist and he's still his usual irritating self. Bryn- he's in a bad way but he's still alive, it will be a while before he's back to normal."

"What Xander, Rhydian and Jana?" Maddy asked in a scared tone.

"We thought they weren't here," Miss Sweeney asked in confusion, "They weren't here when we got here. The guards couldn't find them anywhere in the fields or the woods. We just assumed they must have gone somewhere else before Elgar and his army arrived."

"We have to help them. Wait, how did you know that Elgar would attack when he did?" Ellie asked.

"Shannon," Miss Sweeney said, as the ginger haired girl sheepishly entered the room, "She worked out that there had to be a spy in Segolia, after that it was just a point of intercepting emails. The spy wasn't especially skilled at IT. Shannon was able to hack the accounts and find out that Alex was behind it- and more importantly who was helping Alex."

Maddy rushed forward hugging Shannon, "I've missed you so much."

"I'm so sorry, I shouldn't have acted the way I did," Shannon replied, "I shouldn't have gone behind your backs. If anything had had happened… I don't want to lose you. I've always been on your side, even if it doesn't always look that way."

"We still need to find Xander, Rhydian and Jana," Ellie said impatiently, "You said you knew who it was, well who is it? We need to know."

"Well-," Miss Sweeney began.

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_ BREAK

Jana woke up coughing aware that there was blood in her mouth and a searing pain in her side right where the old scars from the shot wound were. A sharp pain cut through her arm and she was just able to see out the corner of her eye that it was badly broken.

"Xander," she chocked out, "Rhydian… please."

She watched as the blonde haired boy crawled towards her, his face was badly cut in several places and his left leg looked badly sprained if not broken.

"Xander," Jana asked.

"I'm so sorry, Jana," Rhydian said, "I'm so so sorry."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

"It can't be," Ellie said, "I thought she was our friend. After all of times that she said she was trying to help us."

"I couldn't believe it either," Shannon said, "I thought she was the only one we could trust and all this time she was working with Alex and Elgar."

"What do they want?" Ellie asked, "I understand that something happened with Elgar and Jana's mother, but that was years ago. Why would he be up to something now?"

"Because Pedr's still alive apparently, he's six, and Elgar was his reagent," Shannon explained, "Elgar wanted to use Pedr to take control of Jana's pack. As for Alex, he just wants revenge, he blames us for thwarting his plans."

"What is he going to do?" Ellie asked, fighting to hold back tears.

"He wants to kill Jana and Rhydian," Shannon admitted.

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

"Hello, Rhydian," a familiar voice sang, "Sorry about the current accommodation but you see after Alex's old family home was discovered, well we couldn't exactly go back there. We had to choose somewhere off the beaten track. At least this place is remote, Segolia will never find us here."

"We trusted you!" Jana yelled as loudly as she could, which wasn't at all loud, "We thought you were our friend."

"Your friend?" she replied, "After the way you and your friends treated me like your little lap dog? Running errands for you, doing this as that, risking my job whenever your stupid friends couldn't be bothered to sort out their own problems. The way you rejected me, Rhydian, and went running off into the moonlight with Maddy."

"So that's why you didn't help Tom," Rhydian said, beginning to piece it all together, but still in shock.

"Dacia, please," Jana said, "You don't have to do this."

"It's already done."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

"Where could they have taken them?" Ellie asked.

"It wouldn't have been any of Alex's old places," Shannon said, "He would have expected us to look there first."

"He could be using- what do you call it, where you deliberating do the thing people least expect?" Ellie asked, "Reverse psychology!"

"No," Shannon replied, "They talked about the meeting place being even more remote than his parent's house."

"What about Dacia?" Dr Whitewood suggested, "I thought she grew up in the city but what if there was place they used to go to a lot on holiday."

"I'm just looking now," Miss Sweeney said balancing her laptop on the edge of the car.

"I thought you'd locked up that guy," Mr Jeffries said, "After everything he did before, I thought you would have taken some precautions."

Miss Sweeney growled, "We did. We fired him. Segolia is more than able to deal with threat for outside, but it seems we were less able to deal with threats for within."

"You need more Xanders," Gerwyn said, "He knew all along that there was a spy but we all just thought it was Alex, we didn't think that there could still be anyone inside of Segolia working for Elgar."

"We need to find them," Ellie said for the billionth time.

"We will," Becca reassured her.

Liam raced towards them, "What's going on? All I heard was gunshots coming from over here. Is everyone ok? Wait, where's Rhydian and Jana, and that other guy?"

Ellie rolled her eyes, before whispering to Shannon, "Why is he even here?"

"Ellie!" Tom snapped, "He's here to help."

"He doesn't even know who my brother is," Ellie said, "And he doesn't look like he could fight."

"Well at the moment, we can use all the help we can get," Miss Sweeney said.

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

"I hope you like the straw," Alex began mockingly, "The lady at the pet shop said it was extra cosy."

Jana tried to spit at him and felt blood run down her cheek. She was aware that her head was propped up on Rhydian's knees and that her breathing was better than before, but still raspy, she knew it would only be a few minutes before she passed out again.

"You know, Jana," Alex said crouching down so that he was almost the same height as Rhydian on the other side of the bars, "Now's not really the time to be acting like that. I mean, it's not going to help you. In fact if you resist, it's only going to make things worse for you."

"What do you mean?" Rhydian asked, "Why are you doing this?"

Alex smiled, "It's obvious. You and Jana thwarted my plans to rid the world of wolfbloods but that's before I knew all about Arianne, what she was and I have to admit it's remarkable that a wolfblood like Jana can use Eolas and Ancian considering what her mother was."

"What do you mean?" Rhydian asked, "How do you know Arianne?"

"I don't," Alex said, "But Elgar knew her very well, she confided in his. You see Arianne wasn't a full wolfblood, her mother was an obligate and her father had married her mother as a love match- Arianne's father was a powerful wolfblood lord. Arianne was half-human half-wolfblood, but strangest of all, unlike other half breeds she was able to transform at will and use the old powers, I'm still not quite sure how. To everyone she looked like just an ordinary wild wolfblood, she married Alric, an ordinary wildy from a long line of royal wolfbloods and had Jana only a few years later. No one suspected anything out of the ordinary, especially not Alric, it didn't appear to him that's Jana's attachment to the human world, and her small stature and premature birth were linked to her mother's parentage. In fact, Alric blamed you for Jana's love of the human world, didn't he?"

"What do you want from us?" Rhydian asked.

"I've been trying to breed the marked obligates with the wolfbloods but their cubs only live for a matter of days," Alex admitted, "Yes, that's right, Rhydian, little Olwenna won't survive that long, of course Bryn didn't know that and neither did his wife, she died in childbirth, as a lot of them do. You see, that's what puzzles me, how could Jana's family live when all the others died? What was it that was in their blood that made them so resilient?"

"No," Rhydian said, realising what was going to happen next.

"You can't stop me," Alex said, unlocking the door of the cell, "It's a shame she's lost so much blood already, but at least she'll be comatose. If you're really a good big brother to her you won't make too much fuss, she's going to die anyway, you already know that, and I'm sure Jana would want to help others after she's gone."

Rhydian hugged Jana tightly, "I'm not letting you anywhere near her."

"Look, Rhydian," Alex said, "I'm sorry but just look around you, Jana's not going to make it. She's just going to end up like that boyfriend of hers. Best just to make her comfortable, I swear I won't hurt her any more than I have to."

Alex pulled a large syringe out his bag and Jana's wriggled manically in Rhydian's arms, beginning to cry.

"Don't worry," Rhydian said as he stood up, aware of Jana's blood soaking into his shirt and the excruciating pain in his ankle, "We're getting out here."

"But Xander," Jana protested, her hands clutching onto Rhydian for dear life.

"Jana," Rhydian said, a tear falling down his cheek, "He's gone."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

"I can't open it!" Ellie yelled, trying again and again desperately to open the door the outhouse. Her hands were bruised and bloody and several of her nails were painfully torn.

"Stand back!" one of the Segolia guards yelled as he pulled out a crowbar and yanked open the door.

Ellie rushed in the pack and the guards following her.

"Xander!" she yelled, "Where are you?"

She ran into a large room that looked like a dungeon and saw a single cell, the door open. She couldn't believe her eyes. Passed out on the ground were Rhydian and Xander, both surrounded by pools of blood. Xander looked deathly pale, his face covered in cuts and purple-red bruises, Rhydian looked like he still had a bit of colour and Ellie could see that he was gasping for breath.

What surprised her most was that Alex was knealing next to Jana, Dacia at her side, stroking Jana's hair, telling her to keep calm. There was large needle in Jana's arm and also one in Jana's leg but she didn't even make a sound, she didn't even cry.

"Get away from her!" Ellie yelled, throwing a knife at Alex which hit him in the shoulder.

Dacia sprang up, transforming into a wolf instantly but Ellie was aware of the heavy breathing of several wolves behind her. Dacia soon darted off further into the house and several of the Segolia guards followed her.

Ellie grabbed the knife straight from Kincaid's shoulder and held it in front of his throat, "You killed my brother! Give me one good reason why I shouldn't kill you."

Kincaid laughed, "Jana and you are such a brave little girls. But you're also incredibly sentimental, I can tell. You're not capable of killing a fly."

"I killed Elgar," Ellie said, "I threw a knife and it landed straight in his heart."

"Such an imaginative little thing," Alex said, "Killing me won't bring your brother back, and it won't bring Jana back either."

Ellie pressed the knife into his throat as she felt hands wrap around her waist pulling her away from Kincaid, she struggled against them, knowing full well who it was, "No, Aran, I have to, I have to."

"Let Miss Sweeney deal with him," Aran said, as he held her more tightly, "I'm not letting you do something that will only hurt you."

"He deserves…," Ellie began, beginning to cry hysterically, "After everything he's done."

"He'll get it trust me," Alric said storming past, grabbing Alex up by his injured shoulder, "Sweeney's told me that I get to choose what punishment he gets, after hurting my daughter! Let's see if he's still so fascinated with wolfbloods once he's spent a month sentenced to the Kronock."

"Please, I'm sorry," Alex begged, as Alric dragged him out of the room, "I'm sorry!"

Rhydian woke up with a cough, Ceri and Maddy racing towards him.

"Rhydian!" Maddy yelled pulling him gently into her arms, "Oh my God, you're bleeding, Ceri, please do something! And your leg!"

"Not my blood," Rhydian said, still fighting off the sedative, "You need to help Jana and Xander. They're really badly injured, I think Xander's…"

Ceri put a finger to Xander's wrist, "He's alive. Just. His head is badly injured, likely a broken skull. But there's no other injuries as far as I can see. Becca?"

Dr Whitewood ran to help them, "Don't worry, I'll help Xander, you help Jana, you know how to heal wolfbloods better than I do."

"Jana's not," Rhydian began fighting off yawns, "Kincaid said."

"Rest, my beautiful boy," Ceri said, "Gerwyn take Rhydian outside, he needs to sleep the rest of sedative off."

"I want to stay with Jana," Rhydian protested.

"Rhydian," Gerwyn said, helping Rhydian stand up, Maddy also holding onto Rhydian's arm, helping him to balance, "Your mother needs space to work. There are doctors out there who can help you but you need to rest. Jana will be fine."

"I can't leave her," Rhydian cried, wobbling on his feet.

"She'll be ok," Maddy reassured him, "Everyone will be ok."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

The first thing Jana noticed when she woke up was that she was wrapped in bandages. The second thing she noticed was that Rhydian was sitting on the bed next to her, her head resting against his shoulder and he was fast asleep.

She couldn't remember much of what happened but she hurt all over, there was a sharp pain coming from her stomach and her hip but she didn't know why and her right hand hurt when she moved it. She winced, letting out a tiny cry.

Rhydian sprang up, suddenly wide awake, his left leg was bandaged but not placed in a cast. He'd been lucky, it was only a bad sprain.

"Jana!" he exclaimed, "How are you?"

"It hurts," Jana mumbled, "Where's Xander?"

"I'm right here," Xander said as he walked into the room, there was still a bandage wrapped around his head but he hadn't broken his skull fortunately, just a bad concussion that had completely knocked him out, "You've been asleep for so long. Almost three days."

Jana began to cry a little both in joy knowing that the two most important men in life were alive and because the pain was becoming stronger, "What about the others?"

"They're all safe," Rhydian said, "They're all completely fine and so is Bryn. Well he's not completely fine but he's fine enough that he's asking me all about the human world and nagging me about going hunting for him."

Jana smiled but her forehead was creased with pain, "Where's Becca?"

"I'll go get her," Rhydian said.

Xander sat next to Jana, holding her hand in both of his.

"I thought I'd lost you," Jana said, tears falling down her cheeks, her eyelids drooping. Xander reached out hand to gently brush them away.

"I'll never leave you Jana," Xander said, "Never. I love you."

"I love you too," Jana said before drifting off to sleep.


	24. Chapter 24

Jana dozed on the sofa as Xander and Rhydian sat next to her only half watching the football match on the TV. It had been five days since Elgar's attack and Jana had spent four of them in Segolia's infirmary recovering from her injuries, Rhydian and Xander both hoped that Jana was getting better but she was still in a lot of pain and still sleeping a lot (they had originally thought that the human medicines were making her drowsy but nothing seemed to change when they tried the wolfblood remedies instead).

"You know no one believes you just had concussion?" Rhydian said, "You're going to have to work harder to convince Jana."

Xander nodded, instantly regretting it as a sharp pain stabbed through the back of his head, "They said it should take a few months to heal, and that the pain should be gone in a few days. Which means that I'm going to be doing office work for a while at least- especially now that there's going to be the tribunal and about a billion and one security checks than need running on everyone else. I hope they treat Kincaid the same way they'd treat any traitor wolfblood, I can't understand why they just let him go before- Miss Sweeney said that she's going to try to make the judges give him a harsher sentence. As for Dacia, well I never saw that coming, I guess it explains why she dragged her heels whenever you asked her for help."

"I bet they'll want Jana and I to give witness statements," Rhydian said, "I'm not she's in any way ready to be going anywhere. What about Ellie? How is she with everything?"

Xander sighed, "She hates living with Jane. I keep on telling her to give it some time but she's always calling me saying how much she wishes she was still living here. She's really shook up from what happened with Elgar, I want to help her, but how can I now that she's living with a human who knows nothing about us? It's so bad that Ellie has to just pretend like everything's ok."

"Is Jane still trying to play happy families?" Rhydian asked, "Is she still going on about talking to Jana?"

Xander nodded, "She's been mentioning to Ellie a lot. Asking about Jana, what she's like now, what her interests are. Ellie thinks it's a bit weird. I mean considering how she treated Jana, it seems strange that Jane would want to get to know her again."

"I was thinking it would be good for me to be there if Jana wants to meet Jane," Rhydian said, "She knew me too and I might be able to calm things down if Jana gets upset."

"I doubt Jana will want to see her," Xander said, "From what I can tell Jana hates Jane, she blames her for losing you for eleven years."

Rhydian nodded, "But she wouldn't have you. I don't think anyone has ever mentioned this before to you but in the wild we still have arranged marriages and things like that. Jana and I…"

"But you're like brother and sister," Xander said, "It's just so wrong."

"I know," Rhydian said with a laugh, "Our parents made that decision the day Jana was born. I'm only six months older than her but I was always told to look after her, to protect her. We were inseparable. According to mum, when Jana was learning to walk she always held onto my hand not her mother or father's, it was like she trusted me more than them at times. I don't have many memories of living in the wild pack as a toddler, but Jana's in all of them."

"Do you have any photos or videos from around that time?" Xander asked.

Rhydian shook his head, "No, cameras were forbidden in the wild pack. Not unless Jane has any."

"I could ask Ellie to ask her," Xander suggested, "I'd be surprised if she didn't."

Jana mumbled in her sleep, fidgeting a little.

"How long until we have to wake her up?" Rhydian asked, "She needs to eat and drink something, as she probably needs more painkillers."

"I hope she doesn't bite me this time," Xander replied, holding up his right hand that had a large ninja turtles plaster stuck on it.

Rhydian laughed, "It wasn't that bad. We should probably wake her up now."

Xander gently nudged Jana but she just hugged the wolf toy tighter mumbling something about needing to go hunting for meat.

"You'll never wake her up like that," Rhydian said, pushing a strand of hair away from Jana's face, "And she's feverish again, great."

"How do you wake her up?" Xander asked.

"Food mostly," Rhydian said grabbing a packet of fizzy worms from the cupboard and the leftover spaghetti Bolognese from lunch. He knew Jana didn't like pasta but she would probably still eat the mince.

"I'm glad she's able to eat proper food again," Xander said, "Those liquid things looked awful."

"I don't think fizzy worms are exactly proper food," Rhydian said walking over to them. He took the lid off the pot of spaghetti and held it under Jana's nose. Jana began to wake up slowly, gently sniffing the air, her eyes opened gradually and she tried to push herself up but winced as pain shot through her stomach.

"Why are you giving me fake meat?" Jana asked croakily, as Xander put another pillow behind her head, propping her up, "Did we run out of bacon?"

Rhydian smiled, "Ceri's just gone out to get some more shopping, you'll have to make do with spaghetti for now."

Jana scrunched up her nose, "I hate pasta."

"How can you hate pasta?" Xander asked disbelievingly.

"It tastes like I'd imagine worms to taste," Jana said.

"But you like fizzy worms?" Xander asked confused.

"Of course I do," Jana said, spotting the bag that Rhydian was holding.

"No," Rhydian began, "You have to eat your spaghetti first then you can have desert."

"Yeah because you so don't eat chocolate before dinner all the time," Jana said, "Just be glad I haven't told Maddy."

"Please, Jana, I'll do anything so long as you don't tell Maddy," Rhydian begged, as if pleading for his life to be saved.

Jana gave his a small smile, before pulling at her blanket miserably, "I wish I was better already."

She glanced down at her arm that was covered in a turquoise plaster cast, her family and friends had written get well soon messages and draw funny pictures. She noticed the large wolf that had been carefully drawn in the centre of the cast, she knew that Rhydian had drawn that and knew that the wolf was supposed to be her.

"Only four more days until the full moon," Rhydian said, "That usually heals anything in a wolfblood."

Jana let out a sigh, "I wish it was tonight."

"You'll feel better if you eat something," Rhydian said passing her the box.

Jana picked at it with her fork trying to separate the meat from the pasta. She let out a yawn and Rhydian and Xander knew that it wouldn't be long before she was asleep again.

"Why am I so tired?" Jana complained.

"Mum says it's because you're still healing," Rhydian said, "She says that you should begin to feel better soon, you're already staying awake for a little bit longer. Ellie said she might be able to come over later on."

"Please tell her not to paint my nails again," Jana said smiling, as she wiggled her bright orange nails.

Rhydian protested, "But it suits you."

"She'll probably just braid your hair instead," Xander said, "You know she'll be mortified when she sees that you're wearing that jumper again."

Jana smiled as she ate the spaghetti, "It's my favourite. Wait, Rhydian, how much chilli did you put in this?"

"It was Dad," Rhydian said, "It wasn't me, I thought he'd only put a little bit in."

Jana rolled her eyes, "I guess I'll just be eating fizzy worms."

"There's not that much chilli in it," Xander said.

"I still don't like it," Jana said, pushing the pot away and picking up the bag of fizzy worms.

Xander sighed, "Do you want me to go and get McDonalds?"

Jana's face lit up, "You'd do that, for me?"

"Of course I would, my little angel," Xander said, kissing Jana, "I'll be back in half an hour."

"He's so whipped," Rhydian said as Xander closed the door behind him, waving to both of them, "You've really got him wrapped around your paw."

Jana smiled before yawning, "I hope I'm still awake when he comes back. I can't believe I didn't get a chance to say goodbye to Aran, Gwyn, Meinir and my father before they left, I can't believe I couldn't stay awake for that."

"You'll be better soon," Rhydian said, ruffling her hair playfully, "I was wondering, and don't eat me please, I was wondering if when Ellie comes over if you wanted Jane to come over too."

"Why would I?" Jana asked.

"Well, I was thinking about when we were cubs," Rhydian said, "And I realised you don't have any photos or videos of when you were little. But Jane would, wouldn't she?"

"I guess," Jana said, "I just don't know if I ever want to see her again. After everything she did."

"I know," Rhydian said, "But apparently she's changed even if Ellie doesn't like her that much."

"Yeah but why doesn't Ellie like her?" Jana asked.

"Because she gave her a curfew, makes her get up a certain time in the morning and makes her eat healthy," Rhydian said, "I know she had that at school but she was expecting to be moving in with you and Xander and to not have any rules at all. She's got to get used to it again, and to a new school as well."

"I wish Ellie was able to live with Xander and I at the flat," Jana said, "What do you think would irritate Jane enough that social services would have to let her live with us?"

Rhydian shrugged, "I'd have been kicked out of the Vaughans if I made a girl pregnant, or took drugs or something like that. I don't those are really options, it's only seven months, Jana, I'm sure Ellie will be fine. She might even find she likes living with Jane."

"Doubt it," Jana replied, "It's just as well that you waited until after you left the Vaughans to get Maddy pregnant, isn't it?"

Rhydian hit Jana lightly with a pillow, "Oh shut up, or I'll Adrian and Cass to attack you when they're older."

"They'd never hurt their Auntie Jana like that," Jana said, weakly hitting Rhydian with the pillow, "Promise me you'll still visit a lot once they're born."

"Every summer and every Christmas," Rhydian said, holding Jana's hand, "Just like we promised."

"So are you and Maddy going to get your own place?" Jana asked, "When you go back to Canada?"

Rhydian shook his head, "Not for a while. Maddy wants to stay with her parents until the cubs are a year or so old. I guess you and Xander will have your own cubs by that time."

Jana smiled, "Why does everyone keep on saying things like that?"

"Because we all know it's going to happen," Rhydian replied.

"Not until I'm twenty five at least," Jana said, "I can't imagine being able to look after cubs now."

"No one thinks they're fully ready until it actually happens to them and then you just have to be ready," Rhydian said.

"And are you ready?" Jana asked.

"I'm doing the tradition Morris thing," Rhydian began, "Cursing my stupidity and forgetfulness and then cursing a lot more, and then sorting out everything at the last minute whilst the woman I love yells at me. But I'll be fine, as long as Maddy doesn't make me change loads of nappies. I don't envy Bryn at all."

Jana laughed again, before wincing as pain shot through her stomach, "I didn't think it would work. No one expected Octavia… sorry, Olwenna, to live to more than a few days."

"I guess your blood does really have magical powers," Rhydian joked, "Although I think it gave her colic."

"Oh shut up!" Jana said, "I hate what Kincaid did to me, but at least we were able to help her. Do you think he was telling the truth about my mum? It all seemed a little absurd."

Rhydian shrugged, "I don't know. Part of me says it's Kincaid, so why should I believe him but the other part of me wonders why he would have something like that up."

"I wish she was still here, so I could ask her," Jana said, "Does Shannon still think Pedr's alive?"

"I think so," Rhydian said, "It would explain why Elgar took so long to attack, if he was waiting for Pedr to be a bit older."

"But where would he be?" Jana asked, "Do you think we'd ever be able to find him, if he was still alive?"

"If," Rhydian said, "Jana, it's just a theory. We don't know for certain."

Jana sulked a little pushing away the half eaten bag of fizzy worms.

"I'm sorry, Jana," Rhydian said, "I hope he is alive, I really do, but we can't get too carried away."

"It's strange that you just let Shannon back into the pack," Jana said.

"Well, she did save our lives," Rhydian said, "And she's promised she's really going to change this time and it's not just talk, I'm sure of that. She's seeing one of the counsellors at Segolia. It was one of the conditions for her being able to work there again."

"It's still going to take a while for me to trust her," Jana admitted, "After everything that she's done. I just can't forget that."

"I know," Rhydian said, "It's going to take a while for me to trust her again too. But she really wants to make amends."

"I guess people do change," Jana said, feeling as if she were about to fall asleep again, "Rhydian, I was thinking, maybe I could talk to Jane. I want to know more about what we were like as cubs."

"Ok," Rhydian said, "I'll text Ellie, see if they can come over later. Are you sure?"

Jana nodded as she fell asleep.

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK 

"I have never been so happy to see fast food before in my life," Rhydian announced as Xander placed the bags of McDonalds down on the table.

"How did Jana manage to stay awake?" Xander asked as he passed one of the larger bags to Rhydian.

"Twenty minutes," Rhydian said, "Although she barely ate or drank anything. She didn't even finish the fizzy worms."

Xander bit his lip, concerned, "I thought she was starting to eat a little bit more."

"She keeps on wincing a lot," Rhydian admitted, "Do you think we should call Becca?"

Xander shrugged, "Maybe, let's see how much she eats now. She might have just not wanted to fill herself up."

Rhydian nodded, "She's already fast asleep."

Xander watched as Jana breathed slowly in and out, snoring a little, "I'm sure she'll wake up. Do alarm clocks seriously not work?"

Rhydian shook his head, "It was ok when she was with the pack, she'd wake up at sunrise like everyone else. Since moving to the human world, well she's been a bit all over the place."

"We'll just have to use Big Macs I guess," Xander said, pulling a burger box out of one of the bags, and joining Jana on the sofa. She woke up immediately causing Xander to laugh loudly.

"You even got us ice cream," Rhydian said, "We'll have to be careful, Maddy will be back soon. If she catches us we're goners."

Jana laughed, taking the burger from Xander, red meat was exactly what she needed. She ate ravenously, feeling instantly better.

"You're definitely getting better," Rhydian said, joining them, "Either that or you really hate Dad's cooking."

Xander laughed, "I'm sure Jana will be around here every day for dinner. My cooking usually consists of sticking something in the microwave."

"I wish I could do that," Rhydian said, "Now Maddy wants everything freshly prepared and organic. I miss the days when we'd just eat whatever we wanted whenever we wanted. I hope as soon as she discovers that the cubs can eat junk food without getting sick that she'll back off a little, I really miss fast food. McDonalds is actually pretty healthy for wolfbloods."

"Wait, how have you finished that already?" Xander asked Jana in shock.

Jana shrugged, "I was hungry."

"You need to be careful, Jana," Xander said, "You haven't eaten a lot for quite a while, you don't want to make yourself ill."

"Did you say there was ice cream?" Jana asked, as Xander rolled his eyes.

Rhydian looked up in fear as he heard the sound of a car engine.

"They're back," he said mortified.


	25. Chapter 25

"Rhydian! I can't believe you'd do something like this!" Maddy exclaimed as she walked through the door, dumping the bags of shopping onto the table, "Well actually I do believe you'd do something like this, but after you promised me you'd try to eat more healthily."

"Maddy," Rhydian said, taking a bit out of the burger he was holding, "I haven't had fast food in over two months and don't pretend like you don't want burgers and things like that, I know you've been getting meat cravings."

"Yeah, I have," Maddy said, as she emptied fruit and vegetables from the shopping bags and placed them in the fridge, "But I also have self-control. I could quite easily eat tons of fast food right now but I know that the homemade curry we're having tonight will be much better for me and the cubs."

"But McDonalds is actually quite healthy for wolfbloods," Jana said between mouthfuls of ice cream, she'd just figured out how to eat it without getting brain freeze, "I feel a lot better now."

"That's probably because any food is good for you right now," Ceri said, bringing in a large box filled with cartoons of juice and milk and bags of potatoes, rice and pasta, "Any food apart from fizzy worms that is."

"Well you don't have to worry about that anymore, Mum," Rhydian said, "Jana's run out of fizzy worms."

"What?" Jana asked in shock, "How is that possible I had hundreds of bags in that cupboard?"

Gerwyn walked in with several more shopping bags, whistling loudly, feigning ignorance.

"I should have guessed," Jana grumbled before yawning.

"I just wanted to know why you loved them so much," her uncle said defensively, "I didn't expect to get addicted to them. I'll buy you some more, I promise."

"Erm, no," Ceri said, "Jana has to start eating proper food again. I'll make sure you don't put too much spice in the curry tonight. I don't know anybody who puts chilli in spaghetti."

"Before yesterday you hadn't even had spaghetti before in your life," Gerwyn argued, "And you have to admit I do know how to cook."

"Yeah, beans on toast," Jana replied, yawning again, she fidgeted and winced as pain shot through her stomach. She immediately felt nauseous but tried not to think about being sick.

"Jana, are you ok?" Rhydian asked, as he noticed how pale Jana had become, he put the back of his hand to her forehead- she was very feverish, "Mum, Jana's feverish again."

Ceri walked over to where Jana was curled up on the sofa. She looked so tiny and after nearly a week of not eating much she had lost a lot of weight. The doctors at Segolia had given Jana antibiotics to take, and she had been taking them, but Ceri wondered why Jana didn't seem to be getting any better.

"I'm fine," Jana protested, as a pain shot through her stomach and she grabbed for the bucket by the side of the sofa and threw up.

"I'm calling Becca," Xander said, pulling out his phone, "Maddy, can you text Ellie? Tell her she can't come over later, Jana's too sick."

"I'm fine," Jana repeated, "I just ate too much too quickly."

"Jana, you're not fine," Ceri insisted, "You need to go back to Segolia."

"But I thought I was getting better," Jana said miserably.

"You will get better," Rhydian replied, "It's just not going to happen straight away."

"Yeah, Jana," Maddy said, "You we're really badly injured. You should hopefully feel better after the full moon."

"Jana won't be transforming at the next full moon," Ceri admitted, "She's too badly injured, transforming would be too painful for her. The pack invented a potion that means that wolfbloods can avoid the effects of the full moon if they are too sick to transform. I've been giving Jana a little of it for the past couple of days, it doesn't have any side effects, it's completely safe, we've been using it for years."

"You only tell us this now," Rhydian said.

"It's not supposed to be used all the time," Ceri replied, "It's fine on a one off occasion like this, when allowing a wolfblood to transform could seriously hurt them. Used long term it can make a wolfblood go mad."

Rhydian and Xander nodded in understanding.

"We should probably get going," Xander said as he carefully picked up Jana. Rhydian picked up a blanket and her wolf toy.

"I'll be back later," Rhydian said to Maddy before following Xander to the car.

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

"You should have brought her in earlier," Dr Whitewood chastised as Jana slept. Jana hadn't had much energy to fuss when the blood tests were carried out and had spent most of the drive there dozing on and off.

"We thought it was just normal," Rhydian began defensively, "We thought she was starting to get better."

"The wounds are infected," Dr Whitewood explained, "We'll need to change the antibiotics we're giving her and try to figure out what's going on, she should be starting to get better by now. Is she immune-deficient in any way?"

"No, I don't think so," Rhydian said, "Bu Mum said Jana was always very sickly when she was younger. She said it was because Jana was born too early."

"The blood tests should tell us if anything is wrong," Becca replied, "Until then we need to treat her pain, and prevent dehydration."

"More needles," Xander said, "Jana's going to love that. She's even worse than Ellie. We did everything you told us to? How comes the wounds got infected?"

"The hay in the outhouse probably wasn't very clean," Becca replied, "But we made sure that we fully disinfected the wounds when she was staying here. All I can think is if she had a weak immune system that could be causing it."

Rhydian nodded in understanding, "Kincaid said that Jana's not like the rest of us. That her mum was half wolfblood half human and that's why Jana is so much more sickly than everyone else."

"It's a possibility," Becca pondered, "Some of the bands on the DNA sample we analysed didn't match samples taken from other wild wolfbloods. We thought it was just variation but if Jana wasn't a full wolfblood it might explain the differences."

Jana fidgeted as Becca tried to put the IV in her hand, swiping her hand away as if she could subconsciously figure out what was going to happen.

"Jana," Xander said, stroking her hair, "It's going to be ok."

"Don't like needles," Jana mumbled, still half asleep.

"I thought a wild wolfblood alpha like you wouldn't be scared of needles," Rhydian teased, getting ready to hold Jana still if she started protesting again.

"I'm not scared," Jana argued a little more awake, but still not fully with it.

"Prove it," Rhydian said.

"Fine!" Jana said exasperated, and she held out her hand, "Ouch!"

"Sorry, Jana," Becca apologized, "You'll feel better soon. You we're really dehydrated. This show help to bring your temperature down a bit."

Jana stared at the IV with a confused expression wondering how it worked, she made a mental note to ask Shannon later on.

"Oh, brilliant," Xander said pulling his phone out of his pocket, "Apparently Maddy told Ellie that we took Jana back to Segolia and now she's rushing over here, and Jane's with her."

Rhydian rolled his eyes, "I guess it was to be expected. I just hope Jane doesn't ask too many awkward questions- she'll want to know why Jana isn't in a normal hospital."

"If it gets too much for Jana," Becca began, "You'll have to tell them to leave. It wouldn't be good to stress her out too much at the moment."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

Jane couldn't understand why Jana wasn't in an ordinary hospital especially if she was so sick, but she assumed it was probably because of health insurance reasons or something like that, perhaps her family was able to afford private healthcare. She didn't know and she was trying as hard as she could not to make assumptions about the situation or what Jana might be like.

It had been over thirteen years since she'd last seen Rhydian and Jana and she wondered what they looked like, what their interests were and how they would react to seeing her again. She hoped that Jana had received counselling for her problems and that her family had received help for their wolf obsession.

She followed Ellie as she walked into the infirmary, and Jane felt uneasy as she got the impression that Ellie and her friends had spent a lot of time here the past few weeks.

The first thing that struck her was just how sickly Jana looked, she hadn't even looked that pale after the car accident. The young girl looked very thin where the blankets hugged her small frame and her cheeks were bright red showing that she was feverish. She clutched the wolf toy- Jane couldn't believe she still had it after so long, but suspected it was a replacement- to her chest as she slept. Next to her sat two boys. The dark haired boy she recognised at Xander, and was overwhelmed by how much he and Ellie looked alike, the blonde haired boy she instantly recognised as Rhydian- he was still tall for his age, with the same tan complexion and cheeky mischievous look about him. Jane could remember when she thought that Jana and Rhydian were siblings, when they all thought the two were related, they never should have just made that assumption- Jana and Rhydian looked nothing alike.

Rhydian looked up apprehensively from where he was seated next to Jana on the bed. Jane was sure that he would be told off when one of the nurses came in but couldn't bear to say anything herself. He smiled slightly, trying to be friendly, but still able to remember little bits of what had happened at Jane's house.

Jane smiled, trying to reassure him and walked over to the bed placing the little teddy bear she'd bought next to Jana's sleeping form. She didn't understand why Ellie had lied to her- there was no way Jana was just recovering from appendicitis- but she didn't care, she just wanted Rhydian, Jana, Xander and Ellie to be happy and well.

"Hello," Jane said quietly to Rhydian, not wanting to wake Jana.

"Hi," Rhydian said more loudly. Obvious Jana was still a deep sleeper, Jane concluded.

"I'll give you guys some space," Xander said, "Why don't we get some of that Belgian chocolate cake from the café, Ellie?"

"How are you?" Jane asked.

"I'm ok," Rhydian said, "Just worried about Jana."

"I'm sure she'll be better soon," Jane reassured him, "She'll be back to her usual self before long."

Rhydian smiled, "Yeah she hasn't changed too much from when we were living with you."

"She's not still ill is she?" Jane asked concerned, "I thought her family might have got help for that."

Rhydian narrowed his eyes angrily, "Nothing was ever wrong with her. Our family just like wolves a lot."

"Yes but pretending to be wolves? Don't you think that might have been going a little too far?" Jane asked.

"It was just a game we played when we were little," Rhydian lied, "Jana loved make believe games like that. Do you remember how she dressed up a werewolf ballerina for that Halloween party?"

Jane laughed, "I've actually brought some photos with me. Yes, here it is. I have to admit, I think I did try to push Jana into things that were too girly, she was always a lot more of a tomboy- climbing trees and playing in the sand pits, although she did think she was a little princess."

"That was part of the game our family made up," Rhydian explained, "Jana was always the alpha's daughter. It was supposed to just be a bit of a laugh, but we were too young to realise that it was just a game."

Jane nodded understandingly, "So why wolves?"

"Jana's mum said it's because one of her uncles had a friend who was Native American," Rhydian made up, "He used to work with wolves and they worshiped wolves as well, had a lot of legends about men evolving from wolves."

Rhydian could only hope that Jane wouldn't guess that he was recycling the plot of Twilight, he hated that Ellie had made him watch that movie.

"That sounds fascinating," Jane said, "I'm sorry that I misunderstood, of course you wouldn't have completely understood that as little kids, I shouldn't have been so quick to judge. I hope you'll both be able to forgive me."

Rhydian nodded, "I forgive you and I'm sure Jana will too."

"What's wrong with her?" Jane asked, biting her lip slightly, "She looks like she's been through the wars a bit. Ellie said she had appendicitis, but that can't be the case."

"We didn't want to panic you," Rhydian explained, "Jana should be ok, she just had an accident when we went climbing the other week. She broke her arm and hurt her stomach quite badly, it's become infected."

"She just looks so ill," Jane said, "if there's anything I can do to help, just tell me. I didn't mean to cause any problems when I offered to look after Ellie."

"It's ok, thanks," Rhydian said, "I'm sure Ellie will get used to living with you, but she can be as stubborn as Jana sometimes."

"I've had more training," Jane explained, "When I found you two all those years ago, well back then things weren't so strict. I was on the waiting list to become a foster carer, and when I found you two they instantly said I could look after both of you if I wanted to. I was young, I wasn't really ready to look after two little kids. After Jana and you ran away I thought I would never be allowed to foster again, but whilst I was told I wouldn't be able to look after little kids, apparently social services thought they were too much for me to handle- and I have to agree with them- they let me start looking after teenagers around Ellie's age. I think that's what I'm more suited to anyway, even if teenagers can sometimes be difficult."

"Ellie's ok," Rhydian reassured her, "She's just a strict vegan, so don't even try to offer her anything animal based, oh and she doesn't like being told when to go to bed. She's just very independent."

"I know," Jane said, "She's not at all like Jessica, my other foster daughter. I'm hoping that being around someone like that might make Ellie act a little bit more like a kid, she always seems too serious- always planning this or that, talking about college or exams. I just wish sometimes she'd relax a bit more and let someone else help her out a bit. I know she used to be disabled, I wonder how she coped with something like that being as independent as she is, having to rely on other, I worry it's only made her more independent and determined to do things for herself."

Rhydian nodded, "Jana used to be sick quite a lot when she was younger. She's got quite a large family, so there was always someone looking after her but she always complained about being treated like a little baby. She was always so stubborn and argumentative."

Jane smiled, "She a right temper when she was younger. I guess a lot of kids are like that though. I wasn't prepared for her to be the kind of kid who got into fights, I thought she'd be like most other girls her age, you know, just a bit of meanness."

"Yeah, Jana's not at all like other girls," Rhydian said, watching as Jana began to toss and turn a little, "She'll be awake in a minute."

Jane passed a bag to him, "Just a few little things. I was originally hoping that we'd be able to watch the videos together at your place- it's just a home video of some of our trips to the park, and do you remember that trip to the zoo?"

Rhydian laughed, "Jana's been petrified of ducks ever since. She won't go anywhere near them. And she never has really like pasta- I don't know why- although she likes ice cream a lot, chocolates still a work in progress."

"I got her some fizzy worms," Jane said, "I know how much she likes them, though I don't know why, they always tasted like sugary cardboard to me.

"Rhydian," Jana mumbled, drowsily trying to pull at the IV in her hand.

"Don't do that, dear," Jane said, putting her hand over Jana's.

Jana's eyes flew wide open in surprise.

"Jana, it's ok," Rhydian reassured her, "It's not like before. Everything's ok."

Jana relaxed a little, "I already feel a bit better. Do you know when I'm going to be able to go home?"

Jane laughed, "You used to ask that every day you were at the hospital. You know, after the car accident, you were always so impatient. I'm sure they'll let you go home soon, Jana."

"You're just worried about those dreadful soups aren't you?" Rhydian asked, "I don't blame you. Even your step-father's cooking is better than those soups."

"Where's Xander?" Jana asked.

"He said something about cake," Jane explained, "I'm sure he'll bring some back for you."

"I hope so," Jana said, "But if it's the Belgian chocolate one it usually sells out in a heartbeat."

Rhydian smiled, "Jana works here as part of the security team. She met Xander here and they've been dating for a little over two months. They're going to be moving in together once Jana's better."

"Ellie told me," Jane said, "I know I don't really have any right to be saying this but please be careful Jana, you're only young and I don't want you finding out you're pregnant and panicking because you don't know what to do."

"Don't worry," Jana said nonchalantly, "I've already told everyone I'm not having kids until I'm twenty five. Actually, you should give that speak to Rhydian."

Jane raised her eyebrows, "Is there something I should know?"

"Oh, thank you, Jana," Rhydian said sarcastically, "I'm going to be a father in six months' time, Maddy, my fiancé, and I, we're having twins- a little girl and a little boy."

"Wow," Jane said, "I'm sure you'll be a great father. You always did such a good job of looking after Jana."

Jana smiled, "I know he did. Adrian and Cassidy will be so happy to have a father like him."

"Aw, stop it you two," Rhydian said, as they all burst out laughing.

Xander walked in with Ellie, carrying a large cardboard box.

"We might have lied about earlier," Xander said passing the box to Jana, "But I'm sure you'll forgive us."

Ellie smiled, "Go on! Open it!"

Jana opened the box carefully, inside was a large chocolate cake, with 'Get well, soon!' written in purple icing and tiny fizzy worm sweets around the edge.

Jana smiled, "I love you, guys!"

"Love too, Jana," Xander said, kissing her cheek, "I'm sure you'll be better soon."


	26. Chapter 26

"Are you absolutely sure you're ok?" Xander asked Jana, as she contemplated which dress to wear. It was her aunt and uncle's wedding day and originally she hadn't thought she'd be well enough to attend. Of course, her hip still hurt a lot which meant that she couldn't really walk to well but she was in a lot less pain than before.

"Yes, Xander," Jana said rolling her eyes. It had to be the fifteenth time he'd asked in her the past five minutes.

"What do you think, the sky blue one or the green one?" Ellie asked Jana, holding up both dresses, "I can't believe you only own three dresses- and you only own two of them of because I told you to buy them."

"The green one," Jana said, "It matches the cast better. And anyway, Gerwyn said he doesn't mind too much what people wear. I think he'd go in jeans and T shirt if he could."

"Like Ceri and I would let him," Ellie replied, "Is it a wild wolfblood custom to wear checked shirts and plain clothing?"

"It's an immensely sacred tradition," Jana began sarcastically, "If you don't wear plain clothes or checked shirts then you get paraded around naked whilst people throw gone off meat at you."

"I'm surprised Aran, Meinir and your father didn't stay for the wedding," Xander replied, "Then again knowing you father he would have found the whole human wedding thing disgraceful and threatened to eat the guests."

"Actually he probably would," Jana replied, "Although Aran should be there. He sent me a note, I don't think I've ever seen anyone spell wait with a y and an h like that but I suppose at least he's trying."

"He should work for MI5," Xander suggested, "He could easily help them by sending encoded messages, and no one would be able to understand them apart from you."

Jana giggled, "I'll tell him when we see him later on."

"I'm really happy you're going with us," Ellie announced, "I thought you'd be too tired or too sick. I didn't know what I'd do with myself, I need someone to get ready with. Maddy's at Shannon's I think, well I hope so otherwise Ceri's going to be nagging her and Rhydian about being late."

Xander smiled, "I could have always helped you, Ellie. I'm notoriously great at giving out fashion tips."

"Yes, skirt to the ankle, and don't let anyone see a single bit of skin even if it's a heatwave outside," Ellie mocked, "Honestly Xander, the only people you should give fashion tips to are nuns."

Xander grimaced, "That's not true. I let Jana wear whatever she wants, even if it just mostly jeans and jumpers. And I let you wear some shorter dresses, as long as they're tasteful."

"I swear you'd die of awkwardness if I took you to a nightclub," Ellie replied.

"Well at least you won't be able to go nightclubbing for another few years," Xander said, "Though no doubt the moment you turn eighteen you'll be out every single night."

"Definitely," Ellie agreed, "And you'll come with me, won't you, Jana?"

"Erm, yeah, sure," Jana replied quietly.

Xander laughed, "Jana will probably hate nightclubs. She might like the music, but if they don't serve red meat- well, then it's just out of the question."

"Well you usually get kebabs afterwards," Ellie argued, "Or so I've been told."

"I bet you anything a wolfblood invented that tradition," Xander said, "Any excuse to eat."

Jana hit Xander playfully, "Don't be so unfair. I'm not always eating."

"Yes but who absolutely insisted we have to go out and get food the second we moved in to the flat?" Xander asked.

"Yes, ok," Jana said, "But I was really hungry."

Xander and Ellie laughed. It had been strange watching Jana lose her appetite over the past week as she'd recovered from her injuries, but it seemed to be returning rapidly, if not increasing. No doubt the wolfbloods would have organised a massive wedding feast- it seemed the feast was almost as important, if not more important, to them as the actual wedding ceremony.

"We don't want to be late," Xander said glancing down at his watch, "Ceri said we had to be there by half-ten, we've got about an hour."

"That's plenty of time," Jana argued, "Besides I should be the one lecturing you about time keeping. How many times do you think you can get away with the flat tyre excuse before Miss Sweeney realises that we always return late from our lunch dates?"

"Well, next week we won't have that problem," Xander replied gloomily, "The new recruits will be starting."

"How many?" Ellie asked, searching through Jana's cupboards to find hairpins, "Honestly Jana, how can somebody who owns so little still be so messy?"

"Three," Xander replied.

"They should have made it two," Ellie replied, managing to find a single hairpin, "That way you could have all hooked up and gone on double dates."

"I worry about you," Xander said, "I really worry about you."

"I'm not that messy!" Jana protested, "And anyway I'm sure the new recruits will be nice."

"Well they've got to be better than Kincaid," Ellie replied, "Although we would have never found out about your illness if the attack hadn't happened."

Jana sulked, the lab results had come back only a few hours after she'd returned to Segolia's infirmary, it turned out that Dr Whitewood was right, that Jana was immunodeficient- she couldn't remember the exact name of the illness- and that that was why she'd been sicklier than the average cub.

"I suppose that's a rather twisted way of looking at it," Xander replied.

"But it's important," Ellie insisted, "For when you two have babies."

"Ellie!" Xander shrieked, "Jana and I have been together for only nearly three months, it's way too early to be talking about babies and Jana's already made it clear on several occasions that she doesn't want kids until she's at least twenty five."

"Sorry, I just really want to be an auntie," Ellie said.

"Well there's Olwenna," Jana suggested, "You could always be her auntie. Adrian and Cass will be here soon too."

"Like Bryn would let you anywhere near Olwenna," Xander said, "He seems to just let Ceri look after her, unless I try to go anywhere near the baby and then all hell breaks loose."

"Well Bryn doesn't seem to be so offish towards me," Ellie said, twisting a dark curl of hair around her finger, "In fact, I think he might actually like me. Jeez, Jana, not like that, although he is sort of my type."

Xander looked at his sister in horror, before walking towards the door, "Just get dressed you two."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

Maddy and Rhydian waited outside the church, wondering how on earth Ceri had convinced Gerwyn to have a wedding in a church considering he wasn't exactly a saint and he wasn't at all religious.

"Why couldn't they have just had a normal handfasting ceremony/" Rhydian complained, his stomach rumbling.

"Because your mum wanted a proper wedding," Maddy replied, "And to her a proper wedding involves a church."

Gerwyn appeared, looking nervous, but true to form trying to cover it up with his usual joviality, "I think she doesn't realise just how sacrilegious it is, telling a Morris he has to get married in a church. We're not exactly all innocent are we?"

"We're hardly descendant from the devil," Rhydian replied.

"No," Gerwyn said jokily, "But I'm not exactly Mr Perfect, and you got a girl pregnant when she's fifteen. At least I still have some hope for Jana. Where is she anyway?"

"No idea," Rhydian said, "Apparently Xander was complaining earlier about Ellie and Jana talking about babies."

"Yikes!" Gerwyn exclaimed, "You don't think, Jana's, you know?"

Rhydian shrugged, "I don't know what I'd do if she was. Part of me says I'd bury Xander in that cemetery over there and the other part of me says I'd just be happy for her and Xander. I mean Xander is a good guy, he really does love her."

"I think Jana would make a great mother," Maddy said, "In a few years' time, once she's calmed down a little."

"Just imagine a little version of Jana though," Gerwyn pondered, "I remember what she was like when she was a cub, I think it was the scariest time of my life."

"A bit of an over-exaggeration don't you think?" Rhydian asked, "Mum never said anything about Jana being a nightmare. She said Jana was just like any other cub."

"Well, yes," Gerwyn conceded, "Compared to Aran and Meinir, Jana was a brilliantly behaved little cub. Of course your little nightmare cubs are going to look like angels next Meinir."

"I still can't get that video out of my head," Maddy said with a laugh, "'I'm a werewolf ballerina, Rhydian, there's nothing wrong with that, at least it's better than being a frog.' Jana had to be the most adorable three year old ever."

"At least Jane took some photos of us all at that sleepover," Rhydian said, "You honestly didn't believe that we knew each other as toddlers, did you?"

Maddy shook her head, she admitted, "I thought Jana was making it up. I wonder where Shannon is."

As if on cue, Shannon arrived with Tom, both of them looking slightly flustered.

"What's wrong?" Rhydian asked.

"Aran was asking us about a billion questions," Tom explained, "And then Cadwr was complaining because he's hungry so I had to go and get him some sweets from the shop. And then Jana and Xander arrived, and he was arguing with Ellie, although I think she's now flirting with your brother."

"Ellie and Bryn?" Gerwyn said with a smirk, "That's going to be interesting to watch."

"Yeah, well you know what Bryn's like," Shannon said, "I better go back to do damage control."

Cadwr ran over to Maddy, Rhydian, Gerwyn and Tom, almost tripping over his two long trousers.

"What's up, kiddo?" Gerwyn asked.

Cadwr played with the flower on the pocket of his jacket, "Girls wear flowers. Why am I being made to wear flowers too?"

Maddy smiled, "It's just a tradition."

"It's a silly tradition," Cadwr replied grumpily, as his stomach rumbled loudly, "When's the feast?"

"Not long," Maddy reassured him, "I think they're almost ready to start."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

Cadwr covered his eyes with a prayer book as he tried to avoid watching his aunt and uncle kiss. Grown-ups, why did they have to be so disgusting? He thought Jana and Xander and Maddy and Rhydian were bad enough. Why couldn't they just realise that, all their lovey-dovey' ness was absolutely gross?

The crowd let out a loud cheer, and Jana clapped her hands, a beaming smile on her face. Xander stood next to her, smiling too, and Cadwr sighed as he realised that they would probably be getting married soon and he would be forced to sit through another boring wedding.

Aran ruffled the young cubs hair playfully, "Don't be grumpy, Cad. Just think about the feast after this."

Cadwr smiled, whilst human weddings seemed over extravagant and ridiculous to him, at least there seemed to one similarity between wolfblood and human weddings that he could take comfort in.

"Did you see Dad trying to make Mum laugh during the vows?" Bryn asked in an irritating tone, "It's so embarrassing having a father like him."

"Oh come on, Bryn," Rhydian said to his brother, "Dad's actually pretty cool."

Bryn scoffed, "Yeah right. Most of his jokes are so cheesy and worst of all Mum actually thinks it's sweet."

Maddy smiled, "Don't take this the wrong way, but you'll probably turn out a lot like your father when you're older. Especially you Rhydian, you're so much like him already."

"No, I won't!" Rhydian and Bryn yelled in unison.

"They're taking the photos now," Jana said excitedly as if she'd eaten about fifty packets of fizzy worms.

Bryn rolled his eyes, "The worst thing is they'll probably get married next."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

"Go on!" Jana yelled at Xander as they sat at one of the tables, looking out at the dance floor.

"No, I can't," Xander protested, "I quit the band three years ago, I haven't played since."

"I'm sure you'll be awesome," Jana encouraged him.

"The DJ they've got is great," Xander replied, "Do you really want me to usurp Tom?"

Jana nodded, "Please, just one song, please Xander."

"Come on, bro," Ellie said, "I'm sure everyone will love it. Why don't you play that new song you've been writing?"

"Not played since three years ago, huh?" Jana asked, eyes narrowed in suspicion.

"You know why I can't play that song," Xander said, "Not here, not now."

Ellie smiled, before standing up, brushing the creases out of light green dress, "Well, you better decide on what to play because you're going to be up in five minutes."

"What?" Xander asked, before seeing his sister walk to towards Tom, "No, God, no, please don't do this to me, Ellie, please, I'll be the best big brother ever, just please don't do this to me."

Ellie walked back towards their tables beaming with happiness as Xander tried and failed to hide his embarrassment.

Tom smiled at Xander before fading out the music, the crowd turned to face him in confusion, "Sorry to interrupt, but we have a special performance tonight. Xander, if you would?"

Everyone started cheering and clapping as Xander tried not to turn beetroot red, why did sisters have to be so cruel?

He picked up to guitar from where it stood on the stage, carefully tuning it- the guitar had been buried at the back of the Smiths' attic and clearly hadn't been played in years, Xander wondered if the string would suddenly disintegrate, it might be his only chance of escaping embarrassment.

He strummed a C chord experimentally, happy that the guitar was as in tune as it could be. He recalled a song the band had composed a few years back, it was one of the last ones they'd written together and Xander could remember it like the back of his hand- it had been popular amongst the fans and they'd often had to play it three or four times every gig night.

He began to play, feeling as if he was slipping into that old trance of pure energy that used to be so familiar to him. He became totally lost in the music, only coming back to reality when the crowd started clapping loudly and cheering and demanding that he played more. Xander smiled, seeing Jana sitting on the edge of the stage.

"I knew you'd be great," she said to him over the cacophony.

"That was amazing," Gerwyn said to him, "Do you play professionally? You should. I bet Jana will be hounded by jealous girls now, you'll be famous now."

"That was really beautiful, Xander," Ceri said, "Thank you so much for playing for us."

"You should thank Ellie and Jana," Xander replied, "They were the ones who kept nagging me to play. But I'm glad you liked it, I've been thinking about joining the band again actually, now that Ellie's better."

"You should," Ceri replied, "They're always wanting people to play at the Kafe and I'm sure there are venues in Newcastle that would be available too."

"Just as long as you promise that if you become famous you won't go running off with some bleach blonde model," Jana added.

"Yeah, if you do that to Jana, I'll skin you," Ellie said.

"Of course I'm not going to do that Jana," Xander reassured her, "I'd never abandon you."

"Not even if you met the most beautiful girl in the world?" Jana asked.

"You are the most beautiful girl in the world," Xander reassured her, "Although I am likely to now be killed by my sister, so please remember me fondly."

Ellie hit Xander playfully, "I'm not that mean. But please don't get all mushy, this is supposed to be Ceri and Gerwyn's wedding."

Jana smiled, "Of course, we're not going to get all mushy, we wouldn't do that."

"We wouldn't have much time with all this food around," Xander replied, "I swear Jana and I are going to morbidly obese come tomorrow. You wolfbloods certainly know how to party don't you?"

Jana smiled, "Come on, your audience awaits."

_**Sorry for the delay in updating… exam revision :( **_

_**Hope you like the chapter, I was watching If I Stay earlier today (which inspired the ending to this chapter), and I can totally imaging Jamie Blackley playing Xander. **_


	27. Chapter 27

Jana cussed quietly to herself before letting out a tired yawn- the wedding had been great, but she must have partied hard, that was the only explanation for why she had to be feeling this lousy, but then again it had been three days since the wedding, so she shouldn't still feel bad.

Jana shook her head, trying to rid herself of her fatigue fogged confusion, she needed to be awake and alert today. The new recruits were starting later that morning and the trial was also starting that afternoon. Jana felt a wave of nausea at the thought, at quickly leaned over the sink heaving.

Maybe she'd just had a little too much fun last night. It had been the full moon night, but because of the wild pack's potion, Jana had spent on night curled up next to Xander just talking and making each other laugh, and kissing a lot and well, yes, that as well.

Jana cussed a string of expletives before reaching for the small bottle in the bathroom cupboard, she wasn't usually so forgetful. Maybe her injuries were getting bad again- that would explain the sickness, the tiredness, but no, they were nearly healed- nothing but little scars to show that anything had happened.

Jana rested her head against the sink feeling the comforting coolness of the ceramic. She could call in sick, but she didn't want to panic anyone, least of all Xander and Rhydian- she just wanted to be well. At least she'd be starving hungry again in a few minutes- in fact she'd been eating tons more than usual.

There was a soft knock on the door and Jana groaned.

"Are you ok?" Xander asked in a concern tone, "Same as yesterday?"

Jana opened the door slowly, peering out into the semi-darkness. Her hair was tangled and stuck out in a billion directions, her face pale and blotchy and she looked like she would collapse any minute.

"You're not going into work today," Xander announced, scooping Jana up in his arms and carrying her to the bed, "Are you sure your injuries aren't infected again?"

Jana nodded, pulling up her pyjama top, "They're completely fine. See."

Xander nodded, "I don't get it. One minute you're sick, the next you're starving hungry. Then you want to sleep all the time."

"I'm probably still recovering," Jana suggested, "Or maybe I've got some kind of virus…"

"Maybe," Xander pondered, "You aren't feeling stressed about the trial, are you?"

Jana shook her head, "All I have to say is that I was unconscious pretty much the whole time. Anyway it's a show trial, Dad said Miss Sweeney's going to just hand Kincaid over to the wild pack and they'll do whatever the like to him."

"Then what could be causing this?" Xander asked exasperated.

"Look, I'll be fine," Jana replied, "In fact, I already feel hungry."

Xander rolled his eyes, "Ok, ok. I'll go make breakfast. You just stay here and rest."

Jana nodded obediently as she covertly reached for her phone. She watched as Xander left the room and walked down the narrow hallway.

She sent two text messages:

_Ellie, it's Jana, I need your help, is there any chance you could cut school and come over here? Thanks. LOL Jana XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX_

_Maddy, I don't know what to do, I think I'm in big trouble. Please don't rush over here, can you come over here around 10? Thanks. Love Jana XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX_

_Jana, is everything ok? Will definitely be over at ten. Text me if anything happens. Lots of Love, Maddy. XXX_

_Jana, LOL doesn't mean lots of love, it means laugh out loud. Ok, I should be able to escape, just as long as I can somehow trick Jane. Don't worry, it'll be cool. See you then. Chao. Lots of Love, Ellie. XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX P.S. Can you give me more info on what's happening?_

Jana quickly put her phone down as Xander entered the room with a tray full of food.

"Now, before you argue that you're ok," Xander began, passing of plate of omelette to her, "I do think you should take the day off work."

"But there's so much going on today," Jana protested groggily, "Are you sure you'll able to manage?"

"I was going to stay with you," Xander replied, "I don't want to just leave you on your own if you're feeling sick."

"I'm not that bad," Jana replied, picking at her omelette, "I'll probably just be asleep most of the time."

"What's wrong?" Xander asked noticing how slowly Jana was eating, "Are you absolutely sure?"

"Xander," Jana replied, "I'm fine, seriously, Miss Sweeney needs you today, tell her I'm sorry to let the team down. If I get bad, I'll just call Rhydian, it'll give him something to do."

Xander laughed, "Ok, ok. But call me if you need anything. And make sure you eat your breakfast."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

"OH MY FREAKING DAYS!" Ellie exclaimed, as she clasped her hands together in surprise and excitement.

"I don't know anything for certain yet," Jana replied, "So please calm down."

"Calm down, calm down," Ellie answered, "Holy smokes, Jana. This is amazing."

"It shouldn't be possible," Jana said, shaking her head, "Xander and I were so careful, this shouldn't be in any way possible."

"Well maybe human stuff doesn't work for wolfbloods?" Ellie suggested.

Jana heard the door open and could tell that Maddy had arrived.

"Jana, is everything ok?" Maddy asked in a panicked, out of breath tone, as if she'd rushed to get there.

Jana smiled a little sadly, "I don't know."

Maddy hugged her friend as Jana struggled to hold back tears.

"Oh, come on, Jana," Ellie replied, "Cheer up!"

"Jana, what's going on?" Maddy asked.

Jana wiped the tears from her eyes, "I think I might be… well, you know… I don't know how… we were so careful, both of us… I'm not sure what to do, Maddy."

"You need to find out for certain," Maddy said, "Everything will be ok, Jana. You're probably just ill or stressed out from everything that's been going on the past week. If you and Xander have been really careful, there shouldn't be any chance of something like that."

"I hope so," Jana said quietly.

"Wait, what do you mean you hope so?" Ellie asked angrily, "I thought you'd be happy."

"You wouldn't understand!" Jana snapped in reply.

"You asked for my help," Ellie answered, "Not just to sit around listening to you whine about how life is so unfair! There are people out there who would give everything to be in the situation you're in right now."

"Yeah, and there are people who've watched people die in child birth!" Jana replied angrily, before storming off to her bedroom.

Ellie felt shocked and angry. No wonder Jana was always so opposed to the idea of having children, she wished she hadn't been so wrapped up in her own excitement. She stood up.

"No," Maddy cautioned her, "Let me speak to her. You go back to school."

"I can't," Ellie said, "I had to get Mr Jeffries to cover for me, if I go back before lunch he'll figure out something's up and call Jane."

Maddy let out a sigh, passing Ellie a handful of coins, "Well, there's something you can do. Go to the chemist at the bottom of the road. Then come back here."

Ellie nodded, "Ok, back in five."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

Jana was curled up under the duvet, the wolf toy clutched to her chest as she cried. She shouldn't have snapped at Ellie, she thought, of course she'd be excited, that was understandable. But the idea of her having to have a child, looking after a child, Jana was scared at the idea of going through that, even if it would make her and Xander happier than anything else.

She looked up as someone pulled the cover away, expecting it to be Maddy. But instead it was Rhydian.

Jana sat up slowly as Rhydian pulled her into his arms.

"Maddy told me what was going on," Rhydian explained, "She thought it might be better if there was someone here who understands about wildy life. Jana, you'll be ok, it's not like the wild pack, and everything will be ok."

"I wish you weren't leaving so soon," Jana complained, "Is there no way I could come and live with you?"

"What about Xander?" Rhydian asked.

"He'd follow me anywhere," Jana replied.

Rhydian laughed, "You really have got him wrapped around your little paw, haven't you?"

Jana smiled briefly, before becoming quiet, "I'm just so terrified."

"Like Maddy said, it's probably just a stomach bug or stress," Rhydian replied, "We'll all be laughing about it later on."

Jana smiled, "Do you really think it could be a virus or stress?"

"Well, let's put it like this," Rhydian said, "You're immunodeficient and you've just recovered from significant injuries. Of course you could have a stomach bug. And Jana, don't eat me for saying this but, you and I both know you've been stressed a lot- after you were shot, then losing your pack- the human have a term for it, post-traumatic stress disorder, and I don't know if you've got that but it seems like that."

"What potion do you take to cure that?" Jana asked in confusion.

Rhydian smiled, "There are people at Segolia who can help with that. It's not really a potion thing."

Jana sulked, "I wish it was."

"Thanks for not eating me by the way," Rhydian said grinning.

"Rhydian, please don't panic," Jana said, "But I really want pasta, I don't know why, or what the hell is going on, but I really just want pasta. What's wrong with me?"

Rhydian comforted his sister, "It's probably just spending so much time around Xander. Is it true the only thing he can cook is pasta bake?"

"And fish fingers and omelette," Jana added, defending her boyfriend, "And microwave meals and toast, if you can call that cooking, I'm not sure."

"You're probably just surrendering," Rhydian said, "I'll see if Xander's left anything in fridge."

Jana heard the front door slam, and bit her lip nervously, "Rhydian."

"It's ok, it'll be ok," Rhydian said, helping Jana up and putting an arm around her shoulders.

Jana walked into the living room where Maddy and Ellie were talking in hushed tones.

"Let's do this," Jana said taking a deep breath.

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

Jana paced backwards and forwards as she waited, feeling herself becoming more and more scared. Why did this have to happen to her?

She clutched the edge of the sick and looked up in the mirror, her eyes were shining gold and her black veins stuck out, she needed to get out there.

She glanced down knowing she could no longer avoid that moment.

Opening the bathroom door slowly, she could see her family waiting for the answer.

"I'm…"


	28. Chapter 28

"And that is why you don't want to end up in headlock," Xander said, letting the smaller boy go, "Any questions?"

The two girls shook their heads dreamily.

"Good," Xander replied, hoping they had been paying attention to the demonstration, and not just to him. He was hoping Jana wasn't one of those girls who got extremely possessive and jealous. He knew she'd had a crush on Rhydian in past (which seemed incredibly strange to Xander), and that she hadn't been too pleased when she found out he liked Maddy instead, but Maddy and Jana were good friends now. He just hoped Jana wouldn't eat Leanne and Mary.

"Did you say there was someone else joining us tomorrow?" Leanne asked, flipping back her platinum blonde hair for the billionth time, not seeming to notice that Xander wasn't interested in her hair.

"Yes," Xander replied, "Jana started here a couple of months ago. I'm sure she'll be back tomorrow."

"What's she like?" Josh asked in a tone that made Xander want to punch him in the face.

"Erm, well," Xander began, not quite knowing what to say, "She's, er, nice. She's a good person to have by your side, sorry, I mean on your side. Let's get back to weightlifting."

Josh smiled wryly before grabbing the heaviest of the weights, the girls picking up the remaining ones.

Xander looked up at the clock miserably, there was still enough hour and a half until lunch and after that there would be the trial. He hoped he'd be able to call Jana at lunch time, to make sure she was ok, but he dreaded Josh, Mary and Leanne finding out they were together and hated the idea of them harassing Jana.

Xander snapped out of his daydream as he saw two guards enter the room- the two thugs that had been involved in hunting down Gerwyn. They surveyed the room in silence, before nodding to each other and walking off- not before giving Xander a cold glance (it had been Xander's fault that they'd been demoted). Miss Sweeney entered moments later, causing Mary to drop her weight on Josh's foot.

Xander struggled not to burst out laughing, knowing full well that Jana would have.

"How are you finding the training?" Miss Sweeney asked the recruits.

"It's a bit basic and boring," Josh complained arrogantly.

"Don't be like that," Mary replied angrily, "Xander is a brilliant teacher."

"Thank you," Xander said as Miss Sweeney rolled her eyes.

"I need to talk to you about this afternoon," Miss Sweeney said to Xander, before he followed her out of the room.

Xander let out a sigh of relief as soon as the door closed behind him, he was glad to be away from the recruits.

"Do you think they're good enough?" she asked, taking a seat at the desk and motioning for Xander to sit down.

"They're not Jana," Xander replied, "And I'm not sure I'd be able to work well with them on a day to day basis."

"Because Mary and Leanne are infatuated," Miss Sweeney said, passing Xander a box of cookies. He took one hungrily- Jana and he always had morning tea breaks, and he was unused to working straight through to lunch.

Xander nodded, "I don't think they would get on to well with Jana."

Miss Sweeney let out an exhausted sigh, "They do have a reasonable amount of skill. I'll assigned them to main guards for training. And as for Josh, he's not as skilled as I was lead to believe, I would like you to train him up a little more and I'll assigned him to his new post in a few weeks' time."

Xander slouched in his seat, he'd rather stick in his head in one of R&amp;D's centrifuges than spend weeks training Josh.

"You're not usually so grumpy," Miss Sweeney said, "I know that Josh is what you kids would call a 'player' but I'm sure Jana will be able to handle it. And think about it this way, I've essentially given you permission to beat him up every day for the next month or so. Anyway, mentioning Jana, is she ok? I thought she might be back today."

"I think she's got a stomach bug," Xander replied, taking another cookie, "A proper one, although I've never heard of anything like it. One minute she's throwing up, the next she's starving hungry, she's really lethargic one minute then hyperactive the next, and she seems to be better in the afternoon than in the morning. It's been going on for the past few days."

"I'm sure she'll be fine, Xander," Miss Sweeney said, giving him a knowing smile.

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

Jana sat on the edge of the sofa, her hand pressed over her stomach.

It shouldn't have been possible, but the test was positive.

She was going to be a mum.

She wanted to feel happy, but all she felt was scared. She couldn't help but imagine the pain she was going to experience and quickly brushed away a tear.

"Do you want me to call him?" Ellie asked again.

Jana shook her head, "I'll tell him later."

"But he needs to know," Ellie protested.

"And he will," Maddy replied, "Ellie, why don't you go back to school? You don't want Jane to find out you've been bunking off."

"I'm staying here until Jana calls my brother," Ellie replied.

"Ellie, no offence," Rhydian said, "But there isn't really much you can help with right now, why don't you go back to school and then perhaps come over to ours later. Maddy said she might let us get a takeaway."

"No, I didn't Rhydian," Maddy replied, "I told you we'd be making homemade southern fried chicken and potato wedges."

Rhydian muttered something under his breath and Maddy gave him her 'death stare'.

"I just want to be here for when Jana makes the phone call," Ellie replied.

"You mean to make sure I make the phone call," Jana grumbled.

"Jana," Rhydian cautioned her.

"You should be happy, Jana," Ellie replied, "You shouldn't be so worried."

"I shouldn't be so worried?!" Jana exploded, "Of course to you this is all sunshine and rainbows. You're not the one who has to worry about paying rent and bills, you're not the one has to worry about trying to raise a child in a small two bed flat, you're not the one whose life has just been thrown upside down. Of course, everything's great for you, you get to pop in and out of my child's life whenever you feel like it, you're not the one who will be up at all hours of the night looking after a baby!"

"Maybe it would be better if I went back to school," Ellie said venomously, "But at least have the decency to tell Xander before you decide you no longer want the little accident for your own selfish reasons!"

Ellie slammed the door just as Jana began to cry loudly.

"Why does this have to happen to me?" Jana asked between hysterical sobs, "Xander and I were so careful, we both used protection."

"No one has ever actually tested the pill on wolfbloods," Maddy admitted, "It might not work on someone isn't a full wolfblood or a full human. And as for Xander, well did you both use protection all the time?"

Jana shook her head, "There was just one time when he didn't, weeks ago. I was taking the pills, I thought we'd be completely fine, it was just once."

Maddy hugged Jana, "Everything will be ok. Rhydian's just calling Ceri, she'll be over soon."

"What did Ellie mean about getting rid of the little accident?" Jana asked in confusion, "I don't know what she meant, but it sounded like she was majorly against the idea, and not just because we were on about her niece or nephew."

"In the human world," Maddy began, "There are ways to… get rid of a baby… if the couple decides that's what's best for them."

"Like herbs?" Jana asked, "I've heard some of the wild pack used them, but they'll be cursed to our hell forever. Please tell me you and Rhydian never thought of such a thing."

"Oh, no," Maddy said, "I've always wanted kids, I just never knew when, I guess that problem just solved itself. But no matter what you decide you won't be cursed to hell, Jana."

"I couldn't ever do something like that," Jana said mortified at the idea.

"Well there's always adoption," Maddy suggested, "That's when a mum and dad give their cub to someone else to look after. They still get to see their cub if they want to, but that cub has two sets of parents, instead of one."

"I don't know, Maddy," Jana agonised, "It sounds like an ok idea, but I don't know."

"You've got plenty of time to decide what to do," Maddy replied, "And I'm sure Xander will support you whatever happens."

Jana nodded, "I'm going to call him."

"Do you want me to stay?" Maddy asked.

Jana nodded, "Yes, please."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

Xander rushed towards the door, only registering at the moment that he was trying to turn the key the wrong way in the lock. Shaking his head in embarrassment he burst through the door, almost tripping over the stack of letters on the doormat. He picked them up, flicking through them- bills, more bills, and a postcard from his Dad, he hadn't heard from his father in well over a year.

He saw Jana sitting at the kitchen table devouring a humungous portion of beef curry. She looked up, waving at him sheepishly. She looked much better than she had that morning, but she actually looked feverish now, her eyes seemed to be glistening and red rimmed, her cheeks were crimson.

"Hey," Jana said, calling out to him, "We're just having some beef curry, you know the microwave one we got last week? I can't believe Maddy's actually letting us eat that without nagging about calories or saturated fat."

Rhydian smiled, "I know right. It must be because I told her to get some party food from the shop."

"Party food?" Xander asked, taking a seat next to Jana, and grabbing a plate of curry, "I've got to go to the trial this afternoon. Fortunately, it's been put back an hour. Jana you said you needed to talk to me about something, shoot."

Jana winced.

"Azerbaijan! I'm sorry, Jana," Xander said, "I'm a bit all over the place at the moment."

Jana smiled, "It's ok. How were the recruits?"

"Well," Xander said, "Mary and Leanne acted in the way most girls do. And as for Josh, I'm going to probably drown him in liquid nitrogen by the end of the week."

Jana laughed, "Unfortunately, I don't think the lab has any liquid nitrogen. Why do you want to drown him?"

"For the same reason you'd want to eat Leanne and Mary," Xander replied.

"Oh, wow," Jana said, "I'm sure Josh will be ok once he's met me."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Xander asked in concern, "Jana, you're beautiful and amazing, you know that right?"

"Suppose," Jana replied with a shrug.

"Of course you are," Xander said, hugging her to his side.

"Erm guys," Rhydian interrupted, "Kind of feeling like a third wheel over here. Jana, stop dodging the subject."

Jana took a deep breath, before looking directly at Xander, "You know I haven't been feeling well recently."

Xander nodded.

"Well," Jana continued quietly, "I'm pregnant."

Xander dropped his knife and fork in shock, "What?"

"Please don't be angry," Jana replied hurriedly, "I thought the pills would work."

"Jana, I'm not angry with you," Xander answered with a tiny laugh, "How could I ever blame you for something like this? It should have been impossible, but I'm glad it isn't. I don't know what to say, this is brilliant."

Jana turned away from Xander, feeling tears stinging her eyes.

"Jana, are you ok?" Xander asked, brushing a stray curl away from her face.

"I don't know how to cope," Jana replied in a croaky voice, "I don't… I don't want to die."

"Jana, you won't die," Xander said, suddenly understanding why Jana was so afraid, "I know in the wild pack that childbirth was dangerous, put here we have medicines and there'll be wolfblood doctors. You'll be safe, I promise."

"Really?" Jana asked, "Can you promise me I won't die?"

Xander sighed, "There's a teeny tiny infinitesimally small possibility that could happen but not anywhere as likely as in the wild pack. And you're young, Jana, there's no need to be worrying about anything like that. We can talk to the doctors tomorrow, if you want to, I'm sure that will make you feel better."

Jana smiled, "Yeah that sounds great. And you want to keep the baby?"

"Yeah, of course," Xander said.

Jana let out a sigh of relief, "Good. Although I'm not sure how we'll manage financially."

"We'll think of something," Xander said, "Although Ellie will have to share with a toddler."

"Yeah," Jana said sadly.

"Does Ellie know?" Xander asked curiously.

"Yeah, she does," Rhydian replied in a cautious tone.

"Did she give you one of her anti-abortion speech?" Xander asked apprehensively.

"No, she was just under the impression I'd be racing to find a coat hanger if she left me alone. That's what Maddy said at least." Jana replied angrily.

"What?!" Xander exclaimed angrily, "Why on earth would should think that?!"

"Maddy, well she knows more about human medicine than I do," Jana replied.

"No, Ellie," Xander replied, "What would have made her react like that?"

"I was upset," Jana answered, "I was scared. She told me I should just be happy and not worry but all I could think about was the pain and how we'd cope and I just snapped. I told her that she didn't understand what she was on about because she's not the one who's having a baby. I'm sorry, maybe I went too far."

Xander let out a sigh, "Maybe, you went too far? You were scared, Jana, you were absolutely petrified, and you still are, I can tell. I just can't believe Ellie would be so immature."

"She just doesn't understand about pack life," Jana argued.

"I don't really understand pack life either," Xander said, "But I didn't need to be wild wolfblood to figure out what was scaring you, it makes sense, it's not like you could just pop to your GP or a hospital whenever you needed. And as for the financial stuff, well it makes sense that you'd be worrying about something like that, we've just moved into a new flat, you only started work a couple of months ago, we just need some time to sort things out. You don't need to be apologizing for anything."

A knock sounded at the door and Jana sniffed the air knowing that Ceri and Gerwyn had arrived.


	29. Chapter 29

"Jana, we were expecting you to be the good one," Gerwyn complained jokingly, "I despair, both you and Rhydian are out of control. What am I to do?"

Jana laughed, "You're forgetting Bryn as well. And I'm not underage so I'm not as bad as Rhydian."

Rhydian screwed up his face in annoyance, "Jana, shut up!"

Xander smiled, he loved how much Jana and Rhydian acted like siblings even if they weren't actually related. He could imagine what they would have been like as toddlers- constantly arguing and daring each other.

"Anyway, you're only sixteen," Rhydian continued, "So you're not exactly that old."

"You're only saying that because your birthday is in just over two months," Jana complained, "I hate how you brag about being so much older than me, you used to do that all the time when we were cubs."

"I only did it because you used to call me names and steal my food," Rhydian replied.

"That's because I was an alpha's daughter," Jana answered.

"Yes, I remember Alric telling me," Gerwyn replied, "Alpha's daughter handbook 101- section A subsection 15- as an alpha's daughter you can boss people around, call them names and be rude to them in any way you like and if they grumble you can steal their food as punishment."

"That isn't actually a thing?" Xander asked laughing. He could quite imagine a baby Jana writing an alpha's daughter handbook.

"No," Rhydian replied, "Only because she couldn't write at three."

"Shut up or I'll tell my daughter to attack you," Jana replied.

"How do you know it's going to be a girl?" Rhydian asked, "Not more pack astrology, it's less reliable than British weather."

"Well sometimes it's right," Jana argued, "Remember what they predicted about Aran and Meinir."

"Yeah, Jana," Gerwyn replied, "Most wolfbloods are solemn, grumpy and sadistic. You don't need a scrying bowl to see that."

"You've only been here a week or so, but I have no idea how you've managed to make the place so messy," Ceri said as she dumped a bucket of dirty water next to the sink.

"It's Xander's fault," Jana said, earning a playful hit on the arm from Xander.

"Actually most of it is Ellie's stuff," Xander replied, "She seems to be using the spare bedroom as storage space. And she usually spends most afternoons here."

"Well when we start decorating the nursery we'll have to put the boxes in the loft," Jana mused.

"Yeah but that won't be for another few months yet," Xander said, "In fact, you'll be seventeen when the baby's born and I'll be twenty."

"Yes, but I don't want to leave things to last minute," Jana argued.

"That means you've already started thinking of names," Rhydian replied, "And probably colours for the nursery."

"Not quite yet," Jana replied grumpily.

"The strangest thing is that you're already getting morning sickness," Ceri said, "Usually you wouldn't get that for another few weeks. Maybe your children won't be like normal wolfblood or human children. I mean, after all, wolfbloods and obligates can have children, werewolves and wolfbloods can have children but I was pretty sure wolfbloods and humans couldn't."

"Yeah, that's true," Gerwyn said, "Do remember Batty? She tried to hook up with a human didn't she? They never had any children."

"Never probably had the time to," Ceri replied, "Her father got rid of the guy she was dating."

"Maybe it's because I'm more human than most wolfbloods," Jana suggested, "Kincaid did say something about my mother being half-human half-wolfblood."

"I wouldn't trust a word he says," Ceri replied,

"Isn't the trial starting today?" Gerwyn asked.

Xander nodded, "Lasts a whole week."

"What can they spend a whole week talking about?" Rhydian asked, "We all know what's going to happen. They're going to say he's guilty and either ship him off to the north of Norway or let Jana's pack have him."

"Actually they're letting the pack have him," Jana said, "In exchange for my father's loyalty, support in any fights and the recipes for the pack's potions."

"I'm sure Kincaid would be happy to know that he's worth as much as a few bottles of lemon juice and dried herbs," Gerwyn said, "Are you all going to trial later? I could drive you back to work, and then come up with an excuse as to why we're half an hour later."

Xander cussed under his breath, "I've really got to stop doing that."

"Come on then," Jana said, grabbing her coat, "Let's not be later than we already are."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

"Xander, you were supposed to be here half an hour ago," Josh nagged, "And this must the famous Jana we've all heard about."

Josh took her hand kissing it, making Jana feel incredibly uncomfortable.

"Nice to meet you too," Jana replied with a hint of sarcasm.

"Xander, is this Jana? I'm Mary," Mary asked, "I thought we weren't going to be seeing you until tomorrow. I was thinking Xander, if maybe later, you wanted to go somewhere you know…"

"Oh, I think I'm going to be busy tonight," Xander replied.

"Yes, love, did you not remember that we're going out for dinner tonight?" Jana asked.

"Totally slipped my mind," Xander said, "Sorry, Mary."

"It's cool," the girl replied before walking away.

"Since when did you call me love?" Xander asked grinning, "And since when did we have a dinner booked for tonight?"

"Well I could hardly call you Hotpants," Jana replied, "And we should celebrate after today, and something better than a takeaway from the local Indian or the M&amp;S meal for two. What about that fancy restaurant in Newcastle that's just opened?"

"What about our good old restaurant by the sea?" Xander asked, "We haven't been there in weeks."

"I don't know," Jana asked, "I just really fancy Mexican food, although I'm sure by the time I finish work that the very thought of Mexican food will make me feel sick."

"I remember my Mum telling me that when she was pregnant with Ellie she used to eat stupid amounts of carrots," Xander replied, "But when she was pregnant with me she craved burgers. I guess it explains a lot about the way Ellie and I turned out."

"So you mean our daughter's going to be a flamenco dancer?" Jana asked sceptically, "You know there was only one human food that my father every let the pack eat- cake- Madeira cake, actually. Apparently my mother absolutely craved it when she was pregnant with me, I don't know how she figured out that was what she was craving, maybe my grandmother had let her try some, but every time it was mine or my mother's birthday or when there was feast in our honour he'd let my mother go into town and buy a cake."

"That's sweet," Xander said, "I thought he would be totally opposed to the idea."

"He actually used to not mind humans too much," Jana replied, "It was only when Jane found us in the woods that my father started cracking down on how much interaction we had with the human world- he still let Mum buy cake though. Pedr, my little brother, when Mum was pregnant with him she didn't crave cake, I think she craved blackberries."

"You still think about your brother a lot?" Xander asked.

Jana nodded, "I hope Kincaid mentions him. I know Elgar kept him alive, maybe my mother too."

"Jana, I'm sorry, but I think that's what Kincaid and Elgar want you to believe," Xander replied, "But if there's any truth in the matter I'll help you find it."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK 

Kincaid gazed around the room spotting the red haired girl and her boyfriend, they were talking to Rhydian and it appeared that Jana and Rhydian were bickering about something. It reminded him a little of his own brother, but Kincaid shook his head trying to rid himself of his memories- no, his brother was a monster, he'd never been kind to him. Anyway Elgar had been a brother to him, before Ellie had murdered him- he would never forgive her for that.

"Can everyone take a seat please?" Miss Sweeney commanded, "We were be staring shortly."

Kincaid smiled to himself, the fun was just about to begin.


	30. Chapter 30

"Do you confirm that your name is Alexander Robert Kincaid?" Miss Sweeney asked, "And that you stand accused of attempted murder, torture, slavery, kidnap, fraud, and stealing?"

Kincaid nodded.

"And do you plead guilty to any of the charges?" Miss Sweeney asked.

Kincaid shook his head, "They are all fictitious lies."

"What does he mean they're all lies?" Jana whispered angrily to Xander, "We all know full well what happened. It was in black and white that he framed Uncle Gerwyn and everyone knows what he did… what he did to me."

"Jana," Xander whispered in reply, taking her hand in his, "I know. But we've got to be quiet. We'll get our chance to speak later."

"Do you still deny the charges in light of the physical evidence presented to the court yesterday?" Miss Sweeney asked.

Kincaid nodded, "They were documents that appeared forged and as I said before Gerwyn was the one whole stole the money from Segolia, although what he spent it on is a mystery to me. As for the accusations of torture, I have never and would never torture anyone- nor would I attempt to murder people or kidnap them."

"But you do admit stealing from Segolia?" Miss Sweeney said, dissecting his statement.

Kincaid nodded, "I'm sorry to have lied earlier, only I don't completely agree with you accusing me of stealing. I was aware of stealing occurring however, first with the man you caught outside Waltham, and then Tom and the incidence with the serum and later on with Shannon and that new serum that she 'borrowed' to help a friend. And of course Jana and her friends, at my house party, although I partially blame myself for that, I should have kept the devices more securely locked away, and the alcohol too."

"Can you tell us more about this house party?" Miss Sweeney asked with an ounce of scepticism.

"Well you remember well I assume that we took in a couple of students from Bradlington High as part of our work experience programme," Kincaid began, "One of them, Shannon, showed a particular interest in our research work and expressed that she very much wanted to work for us. I kept in contact with her through Dr Whitewood, and also was informed that Jana wanted to work for us- although unfortunately, not in science. I thought it would be a good idea to throw a house party so that the new recruits could meet the older recruits- so that they wouldn't be strangers when Jana and Shannon started working for us. I told them to bring some of their friends along if they wanted to. In the end I think it was Rhydian, Tom, Shannon, Jana and some of Jana's relatives that came along. We were all having a great evening until the teenagers managed to get their hands on some alcohol, then they went walk-about and ended up stumbling upon some serums I taken home with me to do some research after work. Of course, being drunk they were mucking around with them. I managed to stop them before anything serious happened. But some of the other members of Segolia found out and they didn't view it very favourably."

"Please could you explain the following? Several witness share the same story, that you kidnapped them and several of Rhydian and Jana's relatives, performed an experiment on them with potential disastrous consequences, but fortunately they were saved some quick thinking from Jana and her friends. Please explain that," Miss Sweeney replied.

"Well it doesn't contradict my statement," Kincaid explained, "And like I said the kids were drunk, completely and utterly. No doubt in the alcohol muddled state they misunderstood what was going on and thought I was hurting them instead of trying to help them.

"The witnesses also stated that I, myself, was present on the 24th April 2014 when the incident occurred," Miss Sweeny continued, "And I can confirm this. I did not witness any form of party and can support the statements of the witnesses wholeheartedly. The judges at the time passed a guilty verdict. Therefore on the charge of kidnapping, fraud and stealing you are guilty. Do you plead guilty to any of the other charges?"

Kincaid shook his head, "I repealed the verdict and presented my own witnesses to the court, however their evidence was dismissed."

"Witness, not witnesses," Miss Sweeney corrected him, "Give your account of the events that occurred on the 28th September 2015."

"I was at the pub with some friends, much as I was any other Saturday," Kincaid said.

"Do you know of a man called Elgar?" Miss Sweeney asked.

Kincaid shrugged, "I think I might have met an Elgar at the pub once a while ago. A friend of a friend but he didn't say much to me. Must have been at least a year ago."

"Were you therefore unaware that Elgar and his gang attacked Jana and her family, gained access to an outhouse belonging to one of our former employees and where you are accused of once again trying to experiment on Jana?"

"I was completely unaware of any of that occurring," Kincaid said in surprise, "I can only assume that the former employee was the one responsible for such a terrible thing and that this Elgar you mentioned must have had some vendetta against Jana's family for whatever reason and was working with the former employee."

"Some vendetta?" Miss Sweeney asked, "Seems like a significant conclusion to jump too. And our former employee did not have to necessary skills to perform an experiment of that nature. You were also injured during the incident were you not and taken into prison here following the incident, so I'm sorry to tell you think but it wouldn't have been possible for you to be at the pub all day long."

"I wasn't at the pub all day long," Kincaid clarified, "I was called by the former employee to an outhouse where Jana and her friends had had an accident, she didn't know what to do and was in a bit of a state. I agreed to help her, given my knowledge of medicine, and was trying help Jana when I was attacked. It was all a misunderstanding."

"Xander, Jana and Rhydian spent a significant amount of time in infirmary following the incident and it was recorded that their injuries were non accident," Miss Sweeney concluded, "And in Xander and Jana's case life-threatening. Give the instrument used to create the wounds it can be concluded that only you were responsible for the injuries inflicted to Jana. In light of that evidence alone, the judges have already passed a unanimous decision that you are guilty."

"Which I shall of course repeal," Kincaid replied.

"The charges of torture and slavery shall be addressed after we have a short break," Miss Sweeney announced, "Those who have been invited to those proceeding will have been notified by email, and everyone else will be more than welcome to attend the conclusion session tomorrow morning."

Jana jumped up grabbing Xander's arm, "What did they mean by you having life threatening injuries?"

Xander shrugged, "I only had concussion and a bit of bruising, like I said before Jana. Miss Sweeney was exaggerating it a little. I mean we didn't all spend loads of time in the infirmary did we? There's nothing to worry about, my little angel."

"Why do I get the impression you are lying to protect me?" Jana asking in a demanding tone.

"You should tell her," Rhydian argued, "I mean the doctors said you were healing up completely fine, it's nothing to worry about anymore."

"What happened Xander?" Jana asked in an angry tone, almost shouting, "And don't you dare lie to me again!"

"I broke my skull in three places because some obligate dashed me in the back of the head," Xander explained, "I didn't need an operation because it wasn't causing any other complications. The blood was from a cut on my forehead, of course scalp wounds bleed heavily but it wasn't something that needed more than a few stitches. Miss Sweeney said my injuries were life threatening because in most cases there would have been haemorrhaging or blood clots or something like that. I was just very lucky."

Jana let out a trembling breath and hugged Xander, crying noisily as he stroked her hair.

"I'm sorry for lying to you," Xander said, "But you were so ill at the time and I just wanted you to get better and I thought telling you would only make you upset and slow down your recovery. I know I should have told you the truth sooner. Just please don't tell Ellie, I don't want her to panic."

"I understand," Jana said, "I wouldn't tell her."

"Thank you," Xander said, as Jana began to follow him and Rhydian out of the room, "We need to be quick otherwise they'll have run out of coffee and biscuits, and I have no idea how I'll survive without either of them."

Jana began to walk after them but felt a hand grab at her coat, she turned around coming face to face with Kincaid, and almost screamed. Kincaid struggled against the guards.

"Congratulations," Kincaid said in a menacing tone, "Shame the baby isn't Xander's though, isn't it?"


	31. Chapter 31

Jana ran into the empty bathroom and threw up into the nearest toilet, tears already streaming down her face. Kincaid's words repeat over and over in her head. What could he mean when he said that the baby wasn't Xander's? Was he accusing her cheating? What would Xander do if he thought she'd cheated on him? Jana shook her head. No, Xander wouldn't think that, would he? He knew how much she loved him, didn't he?

Then it dawned on Jana. Ceri had said that she was almost certain that wolfbloods and humans couldn't have children. Jana had only assumed that because her mother was half human-obligate half-wolfblood that she could be an exception to the rule. But of course Jana was more wolfblood than human, that part of her dominated.

That meant Xander and her wouldn't be able to have kids, Jana concluded miserably, realising that her fantasies of a cottage in the country and their five redhead and jet black haired kids playing in the garden was never going to come true.

But it also meant… no it couldn't… Ceri had to be wrong… she had to be…

Jana began to cry hysterically beating at the floor and walls with her hands, even when a sharp pain cut through her left hand and she knew she'd broken it.

The father of her baby had to be a wolfblood or a werewolf or a human obligate, but it couldn't be Xander.

"No, no, no, no," Jana muttered over and over to herself, "This can't be happening. This can't be happening."

Maybe Ceri was wrong, she thought, maybe there was some way- hidden in some scripture written eons ago and lost to time- maybe there was a way that humans and wolfbloods could have children.

Because she couldn't bare thinking about what it meant if they couldn't.

She threw up again, feeling completely and utterly miserable. She didn't know how she would face Xander ever again, knowing what she knew now.

She just wanted to disappear.

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

"Where is Jana?" Xander asked Rhydian as he passed him a handful of cookies, "I thought she'd be here. You know, given there's cookies. They're probably going to ask her to present evidence, and we're supposed to be starting again in a few minutes."

"She's probably nervous," Rhydian said, "Are you sure they're going to ask her? I mean they're trying to get a conviction on the torture and slavery charges- that's to do with obligates, not what Kincaid and Dacia did to us."

Xander shook his head, "You don't understand how seriously they're treating what Kincaid and Dacia did to Jana. They're also considering that as torture. Especially as obligates practice flagellation and Shamanic rituals, it's a bit contentious to class those as torture as they're self-imposed. And also Elgar was the one who owned the obligates. As for slavery, there's evidence that Kincaid helped with providing the prison accommodation for the obligates- a bit of a long shot, but technically wolfblood law states that obligates should be free to leave if they wish to, apparently it sorts out the wheat from the chaff, you know, typical wild wolfblood ideologies on strength and all that stuff."

"All that stuff about obligates makes Alric look like a cute teddy bear," Rhydian replied.

"Yeah a cute teddy bear who completely shuns and hates his daughter's boyfriend," Xander joked, "Although I guess it's to be expected, Jana's completely broken with tradition, it's probably considered sacrilegious. She abdicated her role as alpha, turned tame and fell in love with a human and now is having his child- it's incredibly scandalous."

"You know there's one thing I don't understand," Rhydian pondered, "How Jana managed to end up pregnant considering Mum was certain that wolfbloods and humans can't have children?"

"Well," Xander began with a sigh, "There's a lot of things people mean by not having kids. I didn't realise until the excitement died down, but wolfbloods and humans not being able to have children- well that doesn't necessarily exclude a wolfblood becoming pregnant with the child of a human and a wolfblood. I mean I don't want to think along those lines, and I really do hope that there's some way that the baby will survive."

"But what do we tell Jana?" Rhydian said, "I don't think she's realised what could happen. If something happened to the baby, it would devastate her."

"I've been talking to Dr Whitewood about it," Xander began, "She said that normally the offspring of a human and an ordinary wolfblood would produce a wolfblood child, of course that child might not necessarily survive, but the child would half the DNA from a human and half to DNA from a wolfblood. Making that child wolfblood."

"But I thought most wolfbloods were half-human half-wolf genetically anyway?" Rhydian asked.

"Yes half-wolf half-human is the normal genetic make-up of a wolfblood," Xander clarified, "But it's half-human half-wolfblood I'm on about- which I think means that 25% of the child's genes would be wolf related, which apparently is enough for a baby to be wolfblood rather than human."

"Like Arianne was?" Rhydian asked.

"No, she was the daughter of a human obligate and a wolfblood," Xander said, "So her wolf genes were closer to 30%."

Rhydian screwed up his face in confusion, "Ok, just please explain this in simple English, I barely scrapped a C in science."

"Don't worry I got a D in biology and chemistry," Xander said, "You're an Einstein compared to me. Well basically normal wolfblood plus normal human usually result only a hypothetical wolfblood child. Well if Jana and I were able to have a child then that child would be human, not wolfblood because the child would have my human genes and a mixture of human and wolfblood genes for Jana, because Jana is only 75% wolfblood, so her wolf genes are roughly 40%. That means our child would be a human because they'd only be roughly 40% wolfblood and would only have just under 20% wolf genes."

"And normal wolfbloods have 50% wolf genes, half-obligate half-wolfbloods have 30% or so, and you said theoretically a half-human half-wolfblood child would need 25% wolf genes to be a wolfblood?" Rhydian asked.

Xander nodded, "So basically things are different for any children Jana and I might have because they would be human not wolfblood. Which might explain why were able to conceive, and hopefully means that our child would be able to survive."

Rhydian smiled, "For Jana's sake I hope so."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

Jana didn't know how long she'd been in the bathroom but she knew she'd been there long enough for people to start wondering where she was. She didn't want anyone to know about what had happened, but she had to know, she had to know if Xander was the father or not.

Slowly she picked herself up off the floor. Ordinarily, she would have called Ceri, but wolfblood medicine didn't have an answer to those kinds of questions. Human medicine did, Jana knew that much from watching daytime TV whilst she was recovering from her injuries. As much as she didn't want to tell anyone, she knew she had to get answers, and Segolia would be the place to find them.

She looked in the mirror and saw how pale she looked, how red-rimmed her eyes were and how messy and tangled her hair was. Her hand were covered in cuts and bruises and there was some swelling and little bump on the back of her left hand. She cursed herself, so much for Xander not noticing. She could tell him she tripped on the stairs, it might mean he'd wrap her up in cotton wall and not let her out of his sight, but she could cope with that for now.

She grabbed her makeup bag and the pot of concealer and foundation feeling grateful that she'd taken her work bag with her to the trial. Ten minutes later, happy she no longer looked like an extra from a Tim Burton movie, but regretting the whole cheek pinching thing (which made her look like she'd been hit in the face by a door), she left the bathroom and headed straight for the labs.

Minutes later she was hovering outside the door of the labs too nervous to go in and ask for help. She bit her lip, tasting blood and then tried to calm her nerves. She put her hand on the door hand, put the touch of cold metal under hand made the whole thing seem too real. She was about to run off, when the door opened.

"Jana, I thought you were supposed to be at the trial, or at home resting?" Dr Whitewood asked.

Jana shook her head, "I need, I… need to talk to you about something."

"Xander told me the good news," Dr Whitewood said smiling, "Congratulations."

At that Jana burst into tears, and Dr Whitewood hugged her, not understanding why the little girl was so upset.

"Jana, what's wrong?" Dr Whitewood asked in concern, "I thought Xander would have told you, whilst normally the child of a wolfblood and a human wouldn't survive, you two are in different situation because of your genetics- your child would be human not wolfblood. So there's a chance the rules might not apply to you."

"Is there any way to tell for certain?" Jana asked in a shaky voice, "If a child is human or wolfblood before they are born?"

"Well we know any child you and Xander have would be human," Becca said, "So there's no need for testing."

"There is," Jana said in a small voice, barely above a whisper.

"Jana, what do you mean there is?" Becca asked, not wanting to think about what Jana was saying, "Do you mean Xander might not be the father?"

Jana nodded miserably, "But I didn't cheat on him. Please believe me I wouldn't do anything like that. It was just something Kincaid said. He said something about 'shame the baby isn't Xander's'. I don't know what he meant, I don't want to think that something like that could have happened…"

"Oh, Jana," Becca said, hugging the girl. She didn't want to believe that something as awful as that could have happened to Jana. She just hoped Kincaid was trying to cause problems, to emotionally manipulate them, and that nothing like that had actually happened to Jana.

"Is there any way to find out?" Jana asked.

Becca nodded, and Jana clapped her hands together in happiness before wincing as pain shot through her hand.

"It wouldn't be able to be carried out at the moment," Becca clarified, "You'd have to wait a few more months. And then there's a small risk to the baby, which could be a bigger risk in your situation- I can't be sure what would happen if I carried out the test."

Jana sobbed miserably, there was no way she would risk Xander's and her child like that. But a part of her absolutely needed to know the truth.

"Are there any other ways?" Jana asked, "To know if… if something bad like that had happened."

"I'm so sorry, Jana," Becca said, trying to hold back tears, "There's nothing I can do to find out if something like had happened without involving the child."

Jana cried hysterically, lashing out, aware that she was further injuring her hand.

"I can't deal with this!" Jana yelled out, "Why do bad things always happen to me?!"

At that moment one of the graduates opened the door, and on hearing Jana's screaming and seeing her lash out called to the security guys in the corridor for help.

"No, no," Jana said in absolute fear trying to hide behind Dr Whitewood, "They'll tell Xander. I don't want them to tell Xander."

"Jana, just calm down," Becca said to her, "Please just calm down. They're not going to hurt you."

But Jana still looked absolutely terrified, and almost like she'd pass out at any minute.

"Dr Whitewood, what is going on here?" One of the guards asked.

"I think it would be better if you left," Dr Whitewood replied, "Jana just needs some time and then she'll be fine again."

"She nearly destroyed important scientific equipment," the same guard argued, "We should take her to the prisoner area until an investigation can be carried out."

"Go to hell!" Becca yelled at them, "Can't you see how scared she is?"

"Well if you gave us some explanation," the guard said.

"I will explain to Miss Sweeney later on," Dr Whitewood replied, "Now leave."

The guards looked at each other, not quite sure what to do and then left the room quickly.

"Jana, it's ok," Becca said, as she saw the Jana had curled up in a ball and was hiding underneath one of the benches.

Jana looked up nervously, eyes glistening with tears, "Please don't tell Xander."

"Jana," Becca said, "I understand. But you don't need to be afraid. We'll all be here for you."

"He'll hate me," Jana cried, "He'll think I cheated on him or he won't want to be anywhere near me because…"

"Jana," Becca said, "He won't think any of those things. I promise you, he won't."

"Are you sure?" Jana asked, wiping away her tears with the sleeve of her jumper.

Becca nodded, "I'm absolutely sure."

"And those guards?" Jana asked, "They won't lock me up will they?"

"No," Becca said reassuringly, "I will have to tell Miss Sweeney though. But I'll tell her not to say anything to Xander until you're ready for him to know."

"I will tell him," Jana said, "Soon. Just not now."

Becca nodded, holding out a hand to Jana, which the girl took.

"Let's sort out that broken hand of yours," Becca said.

"I'm going to tell Xander that I tripped on the stairs," Jana replied, "I know he won't let me out of his sight after that but I don't want him being afraid that I'm going to hurt myself or anything like that."

"Jana," Becca said in a serious tone, "If things do get too much you need to talk to someone, to tell one of us. I don't want you hurting yourself ever again."

Jana nodded, "I think it might be good for me to speak to someone. Xander did mention counselling once before, for the other stuff in my life. I think it might help me a bit. Obviously all these bad things are happening for a reason, and don't they say that usually means you're doing something wrong if loads of bad things happen to you."

"Jana, listen to me," Becca said sternly, "You are not responsible for any of the bad things that have happened in your life. Not at all."

"But if I was stronger," Jana argued, "Instead of being so small and sickly all the time."

"None of that is your fault," Becca said, "And you're already strong, Jana, you just need to remember that."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

"Miss Sweeney is a legend," Xander announced, "Did you see how she cut through Kincaid's defence? I'm so glad he's been convicted of all of the charges, I would what Jana's pack will do to him."

"Well," Rhydian started, "Let's put it this way. Jana always said if her father buried is old fashioned ways and learnt to read and write he could become a world famous horror novelist."

"It's a shame, I probably would have read his work," Xander said, "Anyway, where is Jana? It was bit awkward when she didn't appear after the break."

"Maybe she felt tired?" Rhydian suggested, "I mean she has only just recovered from her injuries and she's having a baby too. That's got to take its toll. I'll try calling her."

"It's weird, she'd usually at least text," Xander said, "Not unless she's fallen asleep on one of the couches in the meeting rooms. They're usually deserted at this time of day."

"No answer," Rhydian said, putting his phone away.

"Are you looking for the little red head?" one of the guards asked.

"Jana, yeah we're looking for her," Xander said.

"I don't get why you love her, Xander," the guard replied, "She's nothing but trouble. She'll either be in the research department or the infirmary. But she should be in the prison area after what she did."

"What do you mean? What happened?" Xander asked in concern.

The guard shrugged, "You'll have to ask her."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

Jana looked at her bandaged hand and felt miserable, she was always getting injured, and this time she'd been in a position where she could have stopped herself. She felt sick with worry knowing that she'd have to tell Xander, and scared that he would leave her.

Jana curled up on the bed, resting her head on the pillow, her wolf toy sitting next to her. She had already decided that she was going to get a wolf toy for her baby when she was born, and she dreamed that one day Adrian and her baby would be best friends and spend their time running around in the woods playing hide and seek and alpha of the pack and climbing trees just like her and Rhydian used to when they were cubs.

She placed a hand over her stomach wishing, as if by magic, that the baby would undeniably be Xander's.

The doors of the infirmary burst open and Jana looked up to see a worried Xander and Rhydian.

"Jana, what happened?" Xander asked, rushing to her side, "Your hand."

"I tripped," Jana replied, "I know I should have been more careful. I promise I will be more careful."

Xander kissed her forehead, noticing how Jana moved away as he leaned in towards her. It was strange, Xander thought to himself.

"And the baby?" Xander asked.

"Completely fine," Jana said with a sigh, "I need to talk to you about something though."

"Do you want me to stay?" Rhydian asked.

Jana nodded, "Yeah, I think it would be best if you stayed."

Xander and Rhydian exchanged a worried look.

"Is this about something that happened earlier?" Rhydian asked, "Some guard was slagging you off about something that happened."

"Yeah, sort of," Jana said, stroking the fur of the wolf toy, trying not to think about what she was going to have to say.

"Jana, what's wrong?" Xander asked, "You know you can tell us anything."

Jana took a deep breath and tears poured for her eyes, put she brushed them away quickly, "You remember what Ceri said about how humans and wolfbloods can't have kids, don't you?"

"Yeah but we're in a different situation," Xander said, confused as to what exactly was going on.

"Kincaid… he said…," Jana replied between sobs, "He said… that… that you weren't the father…"

Xander slammed his hand down on the bedside table. Not his Jana, not again, how many times was she going to be hurt before things changed.

"Please don't hate me," Jana said, "I didn't cheat on you, you have to believe me."

"Jana, no one thinks you cheated on anyone," Rhydian reassured his sister, aware that black veins stood out on the backs of his hands. He wanted to hug Jana, but knew that she might not appreciate that right now- she might not want any guy touching her.

"Of course I believe you, Jana," Xander said in a devastated voice, "You'd never be capable of something like that. I just… I just hope Kincaid is lying."

"But how would he know unless," Jana queried, before sobbing. Xander reached out to take her hand but Rhydian shook his head. It devastated Xander to not be able to touch her.

"I'm going to find out," Rhydian said before storming out of the room.

He ran down the corridor, aware of people turning their heads in surprise. He knew it was the wrong thing to do, but he'd grabbed Jana's key card out of her bag and now he was going to solve this problem once and for all.

He swiped the card on the scanner and the doors to the prison area opened. There were several cells but only one of them was full.

Alex Kincaid smile at Rhydian, "I can guess why you're here. Jana, told you the news then didn't she?"

"Be quiet," one of the prison guards said, "What are you doing here?"

"There was an incident on level four," Rhydian said, "They need your help. I'll deal with him."

The guard shared a puzzled look before racing off towards the lift.

"You're a bit of a pathological liar, aren't you, Rhydian?" Kincaid commented, "You have an amazing ability to convince people that what you're saying is true."

"I want the truth, Kincaid," Rhydian demanded, blacking out each the cameras with some duct tape he found on the desk, "What did you do to my sister?"

"What I'd love to know is why you're blocking out the cameras?" Kincaid asked, "Surely you'll want to record this to show to the Sweeney."

"No, you were promised wolfblood justice," Rhydian said, unlocking the door to cell and then locking it behind him, "Trust me, you'd rather get it from me than from Alric. I don't suppose you know that Uncle Alric is a traditionalist in every sense of the world. He's not just going to string you up and starve you for a month, and let you dehydrate to death. He'll have you drawn and quartered, can you imagine what it will be like have your limbs ripped off by wolves?"

"But you're not going to let that happen, are you?" Kincaid asked, "Ok, I'll tell you what happened to Jana."

Rhydian nodded, "Go on."

"You're sister is a dirty little cheat," Kincaid said, "I saw her with one of Elgar's younger sons. Well you can imagine what I saw. I'm sorry if you thought Jana was your sweetie pie little sister, but she's not at all like that, she's a liar and a cheat and I hope for Xander's sake he realises that before he gets trapped into raising another man's child."

Rhydian breathed in and out angrily, he knew it wouldn't be long, "I told you to tell me the truth."

"That is the truth. Of course, I left out the part where Jana got injured. Well it turns out your sister had her way with more than one of Elgar's sons. They didn't really appreciate that."

Rhydian transformed instantly into wolf form and pounced, pinning the man down as he screamed and tried to struggle free. Eventually, Kincaid stopped struggling, his breathing slowed, and her heart stopped.

He would never trouble them again.


	32. Chapter 32

Rhydian jumped in horror, turning into human form in his terror and ran from the room at an impossible speed. They would be after him soon, it wouldn't even matter that Alric would have ripped Kincaid limb from limb, it wouldn't even matter if they wanted him gone, it wouldn't even matter if Alric would be pleased that Rhydian had saved him the trouble.

He was a murderer- that was all that mattered.

**Three days later**

Jana thumped the printer urging it work and wishing that Uncle Gerwyn would buy a better computer and printer. On the screen was the missing poster that Ellie had designed- the photo a picture of her and Rhydian on the last day of exams, grinning at the camera, happy to finally have finished school but sad to be leaving behind the stability it brought to their lives.

Jana tried to hold back a tear, of course Rhydian could look after himself but she was still worried. She needed her big brother, especially after everything that had happened but he needed her more, she knew that much.

She knew that Kincaid had died and that Rhydian was considered the prime suspect.

To be fair she couldn't care less if Rhydian had killed him or not, not because she thought it was the right thing for Kincaid to be murdered, but because she understand that in the heat of the moment someone could have easily done that. However Jana knew that Rhydian wasn't a murderer and that she wasn't getting the full story, mostly because people thought she was too fragile to handle it.

"You know the printer works better if you don't beat it to death," Gerwyn said, hugging his upset niece, "Although it does need replacing."

"I think beating it to death would be classed as euthanasia," Jana replied, swinging the seat of the desk chair from side to side.

"Don't use all your technical words," Gerwyn said, "I won't have any of that pretentiousness in my house."

"But hypocrisy is apparently ok?" Jana asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Touché," Gerwyn replied in a defeat tone, "Look, Rhydian will be ok, I know it doesn't look great with him running off like that, but they'll get all the evidence put together and then everything will be fine again."

"Where do you think he's gone?" Jana asked, "To the wild pack."

"He couldn't go there," Gerwyn replied, "Sure, they'd let him in, especially given that Alric thanks Rhydian for helping get over losing his pack, and Alric is essentially alpha until they elect a new one. But it would be the first place Segolia would look."

"Do you think he did it?" Jana asked.

"Do you?" Gerwyn replied.

Jana shook her head furiously, "I know I'm not being told the truth. I just wish that people wouldn't treat me like a weakling. I honestly don't think Rhydian killed Kincaid, at least not intentionally, I think Kincaid died of fright- I think that's more likely."

"I know my own son," Gerwyn replied, "He's mischievous, hates obeying rules and is a natural born troublemaker. Just like me. But a murderer? No. His heart is too good, you're his little sister, he loves you a lot Jana. And he loves me and his Mum, and Bryn, although I think Bryn sometimes thinks that Rhydian loves you more and I can't say Bryn is completely wrong for thinking that perhaps. Someone who is able to love so much and to such an extent can't turn around and do something like that, no matter how upset, or angry or overprotective they might be at that moment."

"I wish people would tell me exactly what happened," Jana protested.

Gerwyn ruffled her hair, "You've been through a lot Jana, and I know people have said that to you so much these past few days but it's true. Worst of I see you trying to put on a brave face, pretending like you're keeping it all together, but if it truthfully didn't bother you as much as you pretend it doesn't then you wouldn't have moved back in here and you wouldn't be avoiding Xander's calls. We're not the wild pack, Jana, you're more than allowed to cry and scream and throw things and slam doors, you are well within your right to and we expect you to be acting like that. You need to let yourself recover."

"I'm not acting strong because I'm still thinking the way I was in the wild pack," Jana replied, "I'm doing it for Rhydian, I need to keep it together so that I can help."

"We will help him, Jana," Gerwyn replied, "You need to let yourself deal with what's happened to you. Rhydian wouldn't want you getting into a state because you were worrying about him."

"But I want to know the truth," Jana argued, "Please, Uncle Gerwyn."

Gerwyn sighed, "Well, we don't know much yet but this is what we know for definite. Rhydian went into the prison room and told the guards that there was a mutiny breaking out on one of the other floors, they believe him and he then put tape over the security cameras whist he asked Kincaid about what had happened to you. After that we don't know much but obviously the voice recorders were still working. Something Rhydian probably wasn't aware of. We know what Kincaid said to him and how he responded. Rhydian said he would give Kincaid wolfblood justice, but he never specifically said what he was going to do to him or said that he would prevent Alric from punishing Kincaid himself. Kincaid said a lot of awful things about you and Rhydian tried to demand the truth from him but Kincaid was playing games with him. Then Rhydian just snapped and turned into a wolf. After that there was lot of screaming and growling."

"What did Kincaid say about me?" Jana demanded.

Gerwyn sighed, "He said that you are liar and a cheat, and that you cheated on Xander with two of Elgar's sons and that you were injured because they didn't appreciate that you choose both of them."

Jana looked sickened, "Well I guess I can extract the truth from that load of rubbish."

"You don't know for certain," Gerwyn argued, "We don't even know if Elgar has sons."

"Even if the baby is Xander's," Jana began, "We will never know because it could have still happened and I would have been none the wiser."

"Jana," Gerwyn said comfortingly.

Jana took a deep breath, "I'm just going to assume that it did happen because I need to get on with my life. If it turns out later there's enough evidence to suggest it didn't happen then I'll be overjoyed. But if it turns out that it obviously did happen then I'll already have strengthened myself a little bit. Did they say anything else about what happened after Rhydian left?"

"They came in as soon as they knew there was no mutiny," Gerwyn began, "They found Kincaid dead in his cell, door wide open. He was covered in blood mostly from cuts and scratches on his arms and torso but they weren't able to tell if they were significant enough to be the cause of death or whether he died of fright. A post-mortem will be needed to determine that. They'll have completed it tomorrow but it already looks clear what they're findings are."

"What have they found?" Jana asked nervously.

"He lost about a pint of blood probably because his wounds didn't heal before he died, had they healed he would have lost a tiny little bit of blood," Gerwyn replied, "To be honest a lot of the scratches were no worse than a cat might give you and there were only three nasty looking cuts but none of them were exceptionally deep. It looks like Rhydian was pinning him down, trying to frighten Kincaid into telling the truth."

"Which would make him innocent?" Jana asked excitedly.

"Yes," Gerwyn agreed, "Death by fright doesn't count as murder or manslaughter. Although Miss Sweeney will probably still punish Rhydian severely, to make an example of him. Don't say this to anyone but Miss Sweeney spoke to me earlier today, she said she could totally see why Rhydian did what he did and that she personally would just give him community service and let that be that."

"What's community service?" Jana asked.

"Picking up litter, washing windows and bathrooms, cooking the food for the restaurant," Gerwyn replied, "Boring dull stuff that no one really wants to do."

"But you said she has to make an example of him," Jana replied, biting her lip.

"Yes, she does," Gerwyn replied, somewhat smirking.

"It's not funny Uncle Gerwyn," Jana said in an irritated tone.

"She's already got an idea, Jana," Gerwyn said, "She wants to teach Rhydian not to react on the spur on the moment, to teach him to be more responsible for his actions, but she knows Rhydian is still considering working for Segolia. Although she doesn't agree with Rhydian injuring Kincaid like that, she said that she admired how long he was able to control himself given everything and not wolf out. She also knows he's a good fighter. She wants Rhydian to be in charge of training Mary and Leanne."

Jana burst out laughing, "That's going to be a joy for Rhydian."

"I know," Gerwyn replied, "I couldn't think of a worse punishment for him."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

Rhydian raced through the woods watching as the river ran through them, wondering how many more beautiful things he would be able to see before the inevitable happened. He missed Maddy so much and felt guilty for leaving her alone with the cubs, part of him knew he should go back but he was so afraid. So afraid of being killed for his crimes. He had killed someone, maybe not directly but in his mind he'd still killed someone.

He knelt next to the water, cupping his hands to drink and then wiping them on his coat to get rid of any excess water. He pulled out his wallet and looked at the picture of Maddy and Jana that was inside. Both of them needed his right now and he felt so so bad. He hated himself for his lack of self-control.

He was almost about to cry when suddenly a pungent odour of wolfblood invaded the air. They had found him he thought, they were going to kill him.

He looked behind him to see two dark haired boys, one a little older than him- perhaps Xander's age- and the other closer to Bryn's age. There was something familiar about them that made Rhydian jump to his feet unsure as to whether he should fight or run.

"Relax," the older boy said, "Rhydian, its ok. I promise, I'm not my father."

"It's true, he's always been a mummy's little cub," the younger boy said, "Always so weak and moronic."

"Yeah, and you went running off to mummy only yesterday when Tomlin pushed you out of the tree, you big baby," the older boy said, "I'm Gregor, by the way, Elgar's eldest son, so technically pack leader now."

"Until I usurp him," the younger boy said, "I'm Steven, sad but true, Mum's a tree hugging human loving wolfblood, no doubt she'll be making me live a house soon, it's what Gregor wants too. You can blame your sister for that."

"You know about Jana?" Rhydian asked in confusion.

"I know the yarn that Kincaid's spinning," Gregor began, "Here's the truth, Kincaid dragged Jana into the room where he was keeping us and told the obligates and wolfbloods that they could have her way with her. Everyone expected Kincaid to return with my father, but he didn't so technically I was in charge. I told them that if anyone touched her I would rip them apart and I ordered my pack healers- the ones who hadn't gone into battle- to help Jana, and when she was a little more coherent I talked to her about my plans."

"He knew Jana had gone tame, everyone did," Steven began, "Of course, meeting a wildy gone tame is rare so for my brother it was like Yule come early. He was probably fantasising about marrying Jana and running off into the sunset, howling all the way."

"Initially," Gregor admitted, "I mean, Jana's become a bit of a legend. Introducing reading and writing lessons, reducing the amount that her pack moved around, even relying on human medicine. Of course other packs heard about what she was doing, some of our pack hated her and said she was a traitor but no one except for my father wanted to hurt her. No offence, I know she means a lot to you, Rhydian, she called out for you and for Xander when she first woke up, but there was a time when our packs were a lot closer- when my father knew Jana as a sickly little baby. Most of pack assumed Jana was still like that and that she would die long before she turned our pack tame. To them she was nothing more than an annoying little blister, irritating but bearable. But I and Mum really wanted to meet her, she's a legend like I said, we thought she could really help us change my pack for the better. And maybe I was wrong to think that way but I did consider offering my hand in marriage, because I thought it would be a good alliance."

"And because you thought she was hot," Steven added, "When Tomlin describe what she look like, that's what you said."

"Why are thirteen year olds so insufferable?" Gregor despaired.

"Yeah, tell me about it," Rhydian agreed, "I have a little brother, Bryn. Jana's technically my sister too- the Rite of Kinship, we performed it a few months ago- although she's sort of been my sister since we were toddlers. Xander's her boyfriend, well probably fiancé now, I don't know, they're moving pretty fast, it's hard to keep up sometimes."

"Girls, such hopeless romantics aren't they?" Steven complained, "The way to a guy's heart is through a cold dead rabbit, to enchant a girl you have to write them sappy poetry and tell them that their hind doesn't look big when they're in wolf form."

"Don't speak badly about Jana," Gregor said to his brother, before turning to Rhydian, "I wasn't able to talk to Jana much, I just sat next to her trying to keep her calm, make her feel safe. I knew I wasn't going to bombard her with questions about her lifestyle there and then. She was so scared and I guess I am a mummy's little cub, I got all soppy and nearly started crying and just sat there holding her hand. That was until Kincaid came in, I tried to defend Jana but there wasn't enough room for me to transform with getting injured. He came in with another man and dragged her away, we don't know what happened after that."

"It's true," Steven said, "I was retching the whole time and wondering if I could convince mother to let me and Tomlin undergo a Rite of Kinship. I swear I'm the only sane one in my family."

"So you didn't hurt Jana?" Rhydian asked.

"I know that's the lie Kincaid is spreading," Gregor began, "But I promise, I wouldn't ever hurt her like that. I want to make peace between our packs, and I'll swear it by the Rites of Fire if I have to."

"That won't be necessary, Gregor," Rhydian reassured him, "You don't need to set yourself on fire to prove anything."

"But he would for Jana," Steven complained, "I didn't hurt her either. Girls are just so… girly. And Jana's such a girly girl with her hair all braided like that and all that rubbish on her face, I only like girls who are real wolfbloods- you know girls whose inner wolf stands out from the second you meet them. Jana had more of an inner Chihuahua than a wolf. I guess that's what comes from dating a human."

"I believe you, Steven," Rhydian said, "You sound like you hate most girls."

"Not hate," Steven argued, "I mean who would do the washing and cooking if we didn't have girls. But Jana, yes I hate her, not in a I want to hurt her kind of way, just in a if I ever saw her again I'd probably just completely blank her and roll my eyes at everything she says kind of way."

"My brother is extremely sexist, I'm so sorry," Gregor apologised.

"I'm not sexist, I'm proper," Steven argued, "Jana might have been an alpha but apparently she was terrible in other respect. She hardly ever did any cooking, and she didn't provide the pack with heirs. And you ask me in all seriousness if I would get with someone like that? I guess you're so tame you're almost human, no self-respecting wild wolfblood would ever get with someone so unaccomplished."

"Once again I apologize," Gregor said in a tone that suggested he'd said that phrase countless times in the past few years, probably several times every day.

"I think I can believe you, but I can't trust you," Rhydian admitted, "Not just yet."

"I understand, and I don't expect you to trust us, not until we've proven ourselves," Gregor replied, "Mother's looking after my pack until I return and Tomlin's helping her. We're taking you home and then we're going to tell everyone the truth about what really happened."

"One problem, I killed Kincaid," Rhydian replied.

"Did you kill him or did he just die of fright?" Steven asked.

"Well he just, sort of, he just died of fright, yes," Rhydian admitted.

"So you didn't kill him," Gregor said.

Rhydian nodded.

"Gosh you tames are such wimps," Steven complained, "He deserves more than death. I'd kill himself even though I hate Jana for being so girly."

"Why? What actually happened that day?" Rhydian demanded.

"We didn't do anything to Jana," Gregor said, "Steven was dozing on and off and shooting me dirty looks the whole time, but he was exhausted because he was ill at the time- the flu I think. And like I said I was holding Jana's hand. My Mum was there, I mean would your mum let you hurt a girl like that?"

Rhydian shook his head, "She'd get my father and Jana and everyone I knew and the whole of Jana's pack and they'd take it in turn to kill me."

"Precisely," Gregor continued, "We didn't have our way with Jana, and well she was barely coherent, so it was hardly like she was capable of registering her surroundings let alone making any kinds of demands. But… but I think someone else did."

"We know someone else did," Steven said, "Stop mincing your words, what's done is done and there's been justice. The gods are appeased and Jana should be too."

"Why? What you mean?" Rhydian asked, although he had a good idea of what they actually meant.

"Kincaid was the one who raped Jana," Gregor replied.


	33. Chapter 33

**(WARNING: This chapter might not be suitable for some readers, as it could be triggering.)**

Rhydian his portion of duck ravenously as the two boys watched him. They had stopped for the evening near a small pond surrounded by fern trees and the sun was just beginning to set. Rhydian was glad that it was too cold for gnats otherwise he would have been eat alive by them. He had spent two days with Gregor and Steven, and he was beginning to feel that they might be trustworthy. He didn't mind Gregor at all- even though his hero worship of Jana was sometimes a little extreme his intentions were all good, and he was happy just to be Jana's friend. As for Steven, he was so much like Bryn that it made Rhydian try to fight back tears every time he spoke to him and then try to hold back expletives as Steven made incredibly sexist and derogatory comments. Rhydian guessed most teenager wild wolfblood boys got like that- after all Rhydian was technically born a wildy and he hadn't exactly been a perfect teenager himself.

"Do they not have ducks where you're from?" Steven asked, passing a duck's leg to Rhydian.

Rhydian nodded in thanks, "Yeah, they do, but they usually cover them in soy sauce and put them with spring onions in wraps."

"Wait what's soy sauce and wraps?" Gregor asked, excited to be learning more about the human world.

"Soy sauce is from China I think," Rhydian said, "I don't really know what's in it, and wraps are bread that's been flattened so that it can wrap around things."

"What's bread and what's China?" Gregor asked.

"Bread is made of flour, a kind of white powder, and then it's mixed with butter which is made from cow's milk, and then you add yeast, which is a fungi, and a few other ingredients," Rhydian explained, "Humans eat tons of bread. As for China, it's a country, like a very big territory owned by a super-pack, like Wales or England, they're countries too."

Gregor nodded, "It's all so fascinating. And is true that humans go to places where they take pieces of paper and carve into them and they end up leaving knowing everything?"

Rhydian smiled, "Schools aren't quite like that. But you learn to read and write there, and you learn lots of other things as well. Jana used to love school, when we were young enough to still attend. You'll probably be too old to attend Gregor, but I'm sure Jana will be more than happy to teach you how to read and write herself. As for you, Steven, you could go to school if you want to."

"Never," Steven replied, "I will never go to school."

"I'm only twenty," Gregor protested, "I'm still very young. How old are you and Jana, if you two are too old school?"

"I'm sixteen, nearly seventeen- I'll be seventeen in December, and Jana's sixteen," Rhydian replied, "We left school last summer."

"And do you still read and write?" Gregor asked.

Rhydian nodded, "You don't stop learning just because you leave school."

Gregor nodded, trying to process the information, "Do they teach Eolas and Ancian at school?"

Rhydian shook his head, "Schools are for humans and wolfbloods."

"Why would wolfbloods go to the same schools as humans?" Steven asked in disgust.

"Humans aren't that bad," Rhydian replied, "In fact, I've got quite a few friends who are humans, and there are even humans in my pack."

Steven's mouth dropped open in shock, "How could you do something like that? You're practically handing our species a death sentence by being so reckless."

"Steven, stop being so ridiculous," Gregor replied, "If they're Rhydian's friends then they can be trusted. Now come on we need to rest, tomorrow we're going to be in Stoneybridge."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

Jana tossed and turned in bed, aware that her restlessness was tangling her hair and that it would a job to brush in the morning. She stared up the luminescent star shaped stickers on the celling that Rhydian had put up there for her when she'd decided for definite that she wanted to be tame. In the wild she was used to sleep with a jar of fireflies at the foot of her tent, this was the closest thing to that now.

She brushed away a tear but was still aware of the dampness of her pillow under her head, she'd tried to use Eolas earlier but she still couldn't see Rhydian. She was so worried about him, so so worried and sometimes the pain of everything just welled up within her and although she knew Xander and her family would never approve she just had to let it out sometimes in that way because otherwise she'd explode.

She pushed back the duvet and grabbed her dressing gown from the end of the bed, before opening the creaking door and tiptoeing across the landing, she pushed open another door gently and saw Maddy look up unsurprised- it was the fifth night that Jana had been unable to sleep, and Maddy hadn't been able to sleep either.

Maddy smiled in understanding as Jana sat next to her on the bed.

"He'll be home soon," Maddy reassured her, "No matter what Rhydian does or says, he never leaves us for very long, he always tries to be there for the both of us."

"I guess that's why he was always running away but neither really knew which way to go," Jana asked, "When he was little he said he always wanted run west or north but never knew why, he always alternated between the two. He wanted to find us."

Maddy struggled to hold back tears, "Can you still not see him at all?"

Jana shook her head miserably, "I've been trying all the time, I swear."

"I know," Maddy said, "And how are you?"

Jana looked down miserably, she hated people asking how she was, "I guess I've not had much time to think about all of it. But I'm scared I'm going to end up doing something unforgivable."

"Jana," Maddy said, putting a hand on hers, aware of just how cold Jana was.

"I don't know how to cope with a baby," Jana admitted, "I'm being sick all time and I feel like I'm going crazy because one minute I'm hungry the next I'm ill and one minute I have loads of energy and the next I don't. And I know nothing about being a mother. I just feel so inadequate and that's before I have to consider that the child might not even be Xander's."

"It's normal to feel underprepared," Maddy reassured her, "I mean we're only sixteen, we're only just adults. Have you talked to Xander about any of this?"

Jana shook her head, tears beginning to fall, "I can't. I can't be around him. It's different with Gerwyn and Tom because they've never been, you know, like that with me. But Xander, I just can't, I'm not ready."

"Jana, it's ok," Maddy replied, "Xander understands, he only calls as much as he does because he's worried about you and he wants you to know he's always going to be there for you."

Jana nodded, "He should just dump me. I mean it's going to take ages for me to be back to normal. He'd be happier without me."

"Jana, that's not true!" Maddy protested, "Xander loves you, and he'd never abandon you, especially not as you're pregnant."

"Yeah, I guess he's not the type to abandon his child," Jana replied, "Unlike me."

"What do you mean?" Maddy asked puzzled.

"I can't do it anymore, Maddy," Jana replied, "I know Ellie will hate me but I can't deal with the idea of thinking that my baby's father is not Xander, carrying someone's baby when they've done something like that. And if the baby is Xander's, well I managed to get pregnant after one night with no protection, as soon as I'm ready, if Xander hasn't moved on and wants that then it shouldn't take long for me to get pregnant again and that time there would be doubts. I hope you don't hate me for thinking that either Maddy."

"No, it's understandable," Maddy said, "Rhydian and I decided to keep the babies because we were already engaged, we knew we'd never leave each other and no matter what my parents thought about it, we thought it was the right thing for us. Xander won't move on Jana, I can tell he's not that kind of guy, you're the first girlfriend he's ever had for a reason Jana, and Xander isn't the kind of guy who just dates anyone. But you need to talk Xander about this, and I don't want to rush you but you probably need to discuss it sooner rather than later, it's supposedly easier earlier on."

Jana nodded, "I'll try to. I mean from what I've been told by the time I could get testing it would be too late. I just wish I was stronger."

"You are, Jana," Maddy reassured her, "And everyone knows that. But you've been through a lot and no one has the right to judge you for making a decision like that, many people make that decision because it's just not the right time for them, I'm not belittling their reasons at all but you have a very good reason to go through with something like that."

Jana nodded but felt completely and utterly miserable. She looked at the clock on the table- half past two in the morning- she knew she had work in the morning but even that didn't make her feel able to sleep. They had told her she could have as much time off as she wanted, and even given her paid leave, but she wanted to lose herself in the monotony of paperwork.

She heard a tapping noise and glanced up, Maddy was confused too, and they both sniffed the air delicately.

She recognised the scent immediately and ran to open the window.

Rhydian beamed up at her, before starting to climb the tree next to the window.

"Maddy, Maddy, Rhydian's back!" Jana yelled.

"What?" Maddy asked, joining her, "Oh my god, Rhydian, I can't believe it!"

Rhydian climbed in through the window and Maddy flung herself into his arms. He kissed her and stroked her hair, allowing himself to cry loudly. Then he turned to Jana, who just stood there awkwardly, happy that Rhydian was back, but not ready for him to embrace her.

"I'll go and tell the others," Jana said hurriedly before darting out of the room.

"Jana," Rhydian called to her, but she'd already left them room.

"I'm so glad you're back," Maddy said, "Adrian and Cass are missing you too, I can tell."

Rhydian smiled, putting a gently hand over Maddy's stomach, she was just beginning to show, "I missed you and the cubs too. I love you so much, Maddy. I hope you don't hate me what I did."

"Rhydian, you didn't do anything," Maddy argued, "That's the whole point. There's not going to be a trial, yeah, Miss Sweeney's going to have to do something but it's already been decided, for the last week we're staying here you're helping to train up the new recruits Leanne and Mary. Word of warning though, they run after anything with a Y chromosome."

Rhydian smiled, "I'm glad to hear that, but I promise I'll let Leanne and Mary down gently. I guess it will give me more time to spend with Jana, how is she by the way?"

Maddy went very quiet and sighed, "Jana's not been coping. She's going to counselling meetings but I'm not sure they're actually helping her at all, even if Miss Sweeney says the counsellor is the best in the country. She won't sleep, she won't let anyone who she's ever had anything to do with romantically touch her or even talk to her, she's barely eating and apart from looking for you she'd just sit in bed all day with her wolf toy just staring at the ceiling. She doesn't want to keep the baby, which is understandable but Rhydian, I think, I mean I might be wrong, it might have been an accident, she's got lots of cuts on her arms, I'm not sure if she's been hurting herself."

Rhydian took a deep breath, trying not to scare Maddy by punching the wall, he just hoped Jana would trust him enough soon, that way he could talk to her, and if she went back to being even a little like she was before she'd open up to him, he knew that much.

"I need to talk to her," Rhydian replied, "Something tells me that Jana hasn't quite told the others yet, I'm worried about how she's reacting to me suddenly turning up like this."

"Go on," Maddy said, "She needs you."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

Rhydian opened the door, registering that Jana moved to quickly pull down the sleeve of her dressing gown and fold her arms. Maddy was right, he thought angrily.

"Rhydian, you could have knocked," Jana said.

"Sorry," Rhydian said, "But I think this isn't the time to be arguing about pleasantries. Hold out your arm."

"Rhydian, what are you on about?" Jana asked, trying to feign ignorance.

"Jana, I'm going to get some bandages and some water," Rhydian replied, "You're immunodeficient, I don't want the cuts getting infected."

Jana held out her arm sulkily, pulling back the sleeve of her dressing gown. Cuts littered her arm and the recent ones bled heavily. She tried not to look at Rhydian, sniffing as she tried to hold back tears.

"I'll be back in a minute," Rhydian replied, as he rushed to the bathroom pulling out a first aid box and trying not to burst into tears, but ultimately failing, he quickly brushed them away- he needed to be strong for Jana. He so much wished it was him going through this and not her.

He opened the door of her bedroom to find her cowering in the corner, curled up in a ball, shaking with sobs.

"Jana, it's ok," Rhydian said to her, moving to kneel next to her, "I promise I will never hurt you."

"I know," Jana between sobs, "I know that you'll never hurt me. But it still doesn't stop me reacting the way I do. It's all my fault, if I'd just thought of you as a friend and nothing more then I wouldn't be making such a mess of everything. You're my brother and I know I'm hurting you by doing this, and I just hate myself for it."

"Jana, you're so strong and beautiful," Rhydian said, "And no one hates you, you're not hurting any of us. But you needs to not hurt yourself and you need to stop hating yourself too."

Jana reached out nervously with her right hand and hesitantly placed it on Rhydian's hand and then jerked away. She took a deep breath, letting out a loud sob before putting her hand on his again and leaving it there.

"You're strong, Jana," Rhydian repeated as his sister smiled in relief, "You can survive this."

Jana held out her arms, pulling back the sleeves of the dressing gown, "They won't need stitches will they?"

Rhydian smiled at her, understanding why she was worried, only his Mum knew how to stitch wounds, and Jana didn't want to tell Ceri, "They'll be ok."

He dabbed gently at the cuts with a damp cloth, some of them were already forming scars and other stood out red on Jana's pale skin. The recent ones had just stopped bleeding and he was exceptionally gentle when he cleaned them.

Jana watched him quietly, and he wondered what she was thinking. Jana had trusted him enough to touch his hand but he didn't know how long it would be before she hugged him or allowed him to hug her. He was hoping that now she knew it was safe for her to be close to him that she might feel a lot more comfortable and it might not take so long. All he knew was that he wasn't going to leave her that night, but unfortunately that would mean that Jana would get no sleep because there was no one way she was ever going to sleep with any man in the room.

Rhydian wrapped her arms in bandages, overlapping the bandages on her left arm with the splint on her hand.

"Thank you," Jana said, before yawning loudly, but trying her hardest not to fall asleep. She tentatively held out an arm and then, closing her eyes and taking a deep breath, decided to hug Rhydian. He was taken by surprise and unsure what to do, Jana hugged him tightly, crying loudly.

"I'm so happy you're back," Jana cried, "I think it's going to be while until I'm ok, but I know I'm ok with being close to you now. I guess it's because you're my brother, and I just reminded myself of that and it made things easier."

Rhydian stroked her hair tentatively, but Jana just nodded to say its ok, "I'm going to be there for you. I'm not going back to Canada at the end of the week, you need me here now."

Jana smiled, before yawning again, she clutched her wolf toy.

"It's ok, I'll be right here if you want me to," Rhydian replied.

Jana nodded, "Thanks, Rhydian. You're the best big brother in the world."

"Thanks, Jana," Rhydian said in embarrassment.

He watched as Jana pulled the blankets around her and put her head down on the pillow, grimacing slightly.

"Here," Rhydian said, grabbing a cushion from the chair in her room and replacing the pillow with the cushion. The pillow was damp, and he knew Jana had been crying a lot, which made him feel guilty.

Jana smiled, putting her head down on the pillow, "Thank you."

"No problem," Rhydian replied as Jana fell asleep.


	34. Chapter 34

Jana laughed at Rhydian as he rolled his eyes. Leanne and Mary were clearly fooling around trying to get him attention, pretending to fall over so that he would feel obliged to help them up. He winked at Jana, noticing that she had come into the room, and then called for a break.

"Training going well?" Jana asked, as she passed Rhydian the food and drinks she had just got from the canteen.

"Brilliantly," Rhydian said with subtle sarcasm as the girls whispered and laughed in the ways girls often did when they were crushing on a guy.

"Well, it's only for another week," Jana said, "Miss Sweeney just told all of us that your punishment will only last a week and then after that you'll be free to do what you want, although she hopes you'll stay on here for a bit longer if you're not going to Canada. I think she's hoping you'll train with Xander and I."

"Third wheel," Rhydian pondered, "I don't think Miss Sweeney meant it when she said my punishment would only last a week, I think she's putting you and Xander in charge of punishing me."

Jana laughed, "I promised we won't be too cutesy. Although, it is good that Xander and I are speaking again, holding hands, I'm glad he's being supportive, even about my decision and the baby."

Rhydian stroked Jana's hair, "If it's what you want to do and you're absolutely sure then he should support you, it's not him who's going to be having the baby and even though I'd love to have a little niece or nephew I'd rather be certain it's Xander's kind and not Kincaid's or anyone else's- because let's face it Jana, we all know you're crazy and you need your genes to be mixed in with Xander's calm genes otherwise your kids will be bouncing off the walls."

Jana thumped Rhydian, "I'm not crazy, just spirited, and you should shut up or I'll tell my kids to step on your tail."

"They probably would anyway," Rhydian replied, "But seriously, if you want kids in the future, and I'm sure that Xander does too, then it shouldn't be a problem and it's not like Dr Whitewood isn't looking into a way of seeing whether or not wolfbloods and humans can have children."

"Like wolfblood IVF or something?" Jana asked.

"I suppose so," Rhydian shrugged, "I guess it's not something I have to worry about."

Jana growled, "It's not fair."

Rhydian grinned, "You don't need to worry at the rate you and Xander go at once you're back to normal again you'll have a football team in no time."

"That's if Xander and I can have children," Jana replied, "I know you think Dr Whitewood has the solution to mine and Xander's problems but it might not be available for a few years yet."

"Don't worry sis," Rhydian said, hugging Jana, "Everything will work out just ok."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

Jana pulled at her fishnet gloves making sure they covered of her cuts and looked up in horror at the group of elderly women gathered outside the building. Their posters contained horrible pictures and Jana was reminded of the fact that Ellie would have probably ended up being one of these old women if it hadn't been for what had happened to Jana.

Jana and Ellie had reconciled only a few days ago, but it hadn't exactly gone to plan. Ellie was strongly against abortion except for where the mother's life is at risk but both Jana and Xander had much more relaxed views (Xander was actually very liberal about the whole thing. Jana remembered how nervous she had been when she first mention abortion, but he said it was her choice and had always been her choice, and that he would support her either way). Ellie had argued at first but then Jana had explained to her how everything was affecting her emotionally and it seemed to change Ellie's opinions slightly- once she got to see what it actually means for the people involved in making a decision, rather than just hearing about it on TV or reading about it in a leaflet.

"Don't worry, Jana," Xander said, putting a hand tentatively over Jana's, "You don't have to listen to them. If this is what you want then I'll support you like I said. We'll all support you."

Jana smiled, "It's difficult but I know it's for the best. We can have children in the future if we want to, and then we'll be certain those kids are definitely ours. Also, well, Ceri said things didn't bode well, I mean, well, she said there were certain things about the pregnancy that were unusual- the cravings and sickness occurring as early as it was. She said human babies don't respond in that way."

"Jana, what do you mean?" Xander asked.

Jana took a deep breath, "Ceri thinks the father was wolfblood. I mean she probably has a point, even with my genes the child would still be human, and you saw for yourself how much meat I've been eating the past few days. It's hard to accept but Rhydian told me what Gregor and Steven told him and it makes sense. In fact in some ways it's easier to deal with it being a stranger than someone we know."

Xander tried to hold back tears, "I'm so sorry, Jana. I wish I could have done something."

"I know," Jana said, "Rhydian said the same thing again and again. But it was a well-orchestrated attack, there was no way we could have done anything to stop what happened. The best thing is to accept what happened and then to try to work to move past it, I think I can do that."

"I know you can," Xander reassured her.

Jana opened the door, hearing the shouts of the protestors, but trying to block them out. Xander held out a hand to her and she took it gladly. As much as she still wasn't completely comfortable being around Xander, mostly because they had been very close before Kincaid's and Elgar's attack, they were able to hold hands now and had tried kissing the day before Jana still wasn't completely ready for that yet although she knew she was getting there. She was even think that she might move back into the flat soon, sleeping in separate rooms of course, just because she liked being at the flat- not that she didn't mind living with Ceri and Gerwyn but it could be a bit crazy there and she needed her own space.

Xander knocked on the door and a kind looking lady ushered them inside. It looked like the waiting room of any other doctor's surgery but Jana had never been to a normal doctors and she was apprehensive about being in a strange environment.

"You must be Jana and Xander," the lady said chirpily, "If you take a seat and just fill in these forms, one of the nurses will be out to talk to you in a minute."

Jana and Xander sat on one of the sofas where there were posters on noticeboards all around the room with pictures of babies and all other family related things that a couple might need to know.

"They won't ask about," Jana began, "Will they?"

Xander squeezed her hand gently, expecting her to jump, "I don't think they need to ask. I explained everything to them when I called up. They'll just want you to confirm that this is what you want. You don't have to tell them anything you don't want to."

Jana kicked at the carpet with her boots, "Did they say if it would hurt a lot?"

Xander wanted to hug Jana, to tell her everything would be ok and that he would be there but he knew that wouldn't help her and it tore him apart inside, "You'll be ok, Jana."

One of the nurses called her name and Jana stood nervously before walking to where the nurse was standing, Xander holding her hand and telling her everything was going to be ok.

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

Jana snored lightly as she sat in the front seat of the car, it was all over and Xander hoped that might help Jana get better. He was still reeling from what Jana had told him earlier, that the baby was likely a wolfblood not a human, he couldn't believe the cruelty of it. But Jana seemed to weather it all especially well, perhaps because of the tablets that Segolia had given her or because Jana was always a lot stronger than she thought she was or a combination of both of those things.

He smiled at her, and then realised to his surprise that Jana was fast asleep and she didn't have her wolf toy with her. It seemed so odd, and he didn't know whether it was a good or a bad thing.

Jana woke up with a yawn, staring around the car bleary eyed.

"Where are we?" she mumbled, "This isn't Stoneybridge."

"I thought we'd go to our restaurant for dinner," Xander said.

"Our restaurant," Jana said with a smirk.

"Well we do go there enough times that we realistically call it our restaurant," Xander defended, "And anyway I find a mushroom and steak stroganoff always makes me feel better."

Jana smiled, "It sounds cool."

"Yeah, I think it would be good for us just to be normal for a while, you know being surrounded by wolfbloods and wolfblood ways of life can sometimes feel like you're lost in a fantasy novel," Xander explained, "Sometimes I just want us to be a normal guy and a normal girl."

Jana smiled, "I like that idea. I think it would be good for us just to be normal once in a while."

"Well there is something very very normal that we could do," Xander began, earning a confused look from Jana, "Segolia has an annual networking party every November, basically it's like prom for adults, everyone gets dressed up in suits and dresses and all that, and there's a fancy meal and awards are given out and then everyone talks and tries to convince someone to give them a promotion or a pay rise. I wouldn't have gone to any of the events myself, but you know what Ellie's like, any excuse to go shopping and get involved in party planning, and Miss Sweeney always told me she expected me to be there- even though I was never put on guard duty or anything. I was just wondering if you wanted to go with me to this year's event, I know it doesn't sound like the greatest thing in the world but I thought it might be cool if you were there."

Jana smiled, "Yeah, I'd love to. My school never had a prom- lack of funding or something like that- the Ks wanted us to have a prom but it never got organised in time. So yeah, I'd love to go to the networking event with you."

"That's great," Xander replied with a smile.

"Just one thing though," Jana added with a laugh, "You boys can be so naïve. I know full well why Miss Sweeney wanted you to go to the networking event."

"Yeah, go on," Xander said.

"Because you hadn't met me last year," Jana replied.

"Oh, gosh," Xander replied in realisation, "I guess Auntie Vicky and I had very different ideas of what a networking event should be about."

Jana smiled, "Well you have me, I'll save you from Leanne and Mary."

"I think they're more interested in Rhydian," Xander admitted, "Maybe we should tell Maddy to pop into Segolia one day just to get them to back off."

"But no, Rhydian's punishment is supposed to be having Leanne and Mary crush on him, remember?" Jana explained, "That's why he was assigned them."

Xander laughed, "Ok, well it is only a week, he should be able to survive."

"Yeah," Jana replied, with a yawn, "He'll be fine."

"Tired?" Xander asked in concern, he knew Jana hadn't been sleeping well. Rhydian had explained to on the phone a few days ago about just how badly the attack had affected Jana and now Xander was almost paranoid that Jana might end up cutting herself badly or stop eating altogether. Whilst the antidepressants had helped her greatly there were still signs that not everything was all fine and whilst Xander knew the main reason for the fancy dinner was just that he wanted Jana to relax and remember the good times they had spent together, part of his reasoning was also that Jana had become very thin and a large meal could easily kick-start her appetite again.

"Just a little," Jana replied.

"Sleep," Xander answered, "I'll tell you when we arrive."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

They walked along the beach holding hands, watching as the waves lapped over the pebbly shore. It was night, and had been for a few hours but the moon and stars beamed brightly above illuminating the shimmering water below.

Jana wrapped her coat tightly around her trying to block out the cold. Part of her wanted to be closer to Xander but another part of her told her it was too soon and that she needed to take things slowly. She didn't know what to decide, her mind was a whirlwind. On the one hand she knew she could trust Xander but on the other he was still a man and Jana was just a little girl and he could easily overpower her that's what scared her to most.

"Jana," Xander said as Jana stopped walking and stared out at the sea, the look in her eyes distant and somewhat fearful.

"Xander," Jana said in a croaky voice, tears staining her eyes, "I don't know what to do."

"Trust yourself," Xander replied, "You know what's right for you."

And just like that Jana stepped forward closing the space between them and kissed Xander. At first she felt terrified and her legs trembled and she thought she would fall over, so reached out hugging Xander to her to keep her steady, because this was what she wanted, more than anything else, she wanted Xander, loving supportive, Xander. Jana felt ashamed that she'd even thought that Xander could be a threat to her, he was always so sweet and kind and gentle, and she knew that in her heart completely and utterly. It was undeniable truth in a world where lies were handed out like sweets.

Jana pulled away feeling exhilarated and smiled.

Xander smiled in relief, hugging her gently and then a little more tightly as he realised that Jana was no longer afraid of him or afraid of being close to him. His beautiful strong Jana who had been knocked down so many times but always won in the end, he was amazed at how well she was doing in such a short space of time.

"Just kissing," Jana said suddenly, "And hugging, holding hands and stuff like that. Nothing else."

Xander nodded in sympathy, "I understand."

Jana gave him a kiss of the cheek before they both stared at the moon shimmering over the water- the thin sliver of the waxing moon just after the new moon- it couldn't be more appropriate, it was like they were emerging from the darkness and growing all over again too.


	35. Chapter 35

"I have no idea what to wear!" Jana exclaimed, her clothes strewn all across the room as she searched for a dress that would be suitable for the networking event. She really should have called Ellie, she would know what Jana should wear, but she didn't really want to spend a whole day shopping before the event and Jana knew that if she called Ellie now they would both end up winding each other up. After all this was Xander and Jana's first date since… well it was sort of a date, sort of a double date as well- Maddy and Rhydian had agreed to attend the networking event with them.

"Just wear clothes," Cadwr said in reply, as he perched on the edge of the sofa chair in the corner of Jana's room, "Jana, it's not really a big deal."

"Yes, it is," Jana argued, "It's perhaps the most important event that Segolia runs every year and I've got to look smart."

"Cadwr is right you know," Ceri said, passing Jana a basket full of washing, "The invite said smart-casual, as long as you're not wearing a tracksuit and you don't wear those awful boots you should be fine."

"My boots are not awful," Jana argued, looking at her scuffed up boots that were close to falling apart, "They're just old."

"They should have been thrown away ages ago," Cadwr argued.

"I promise I won't wear them," Jana said, before sighing.

"You know Xander said that you didn't have to go if you didn't want to," Ceri said.

"I know, I know," Jana replied flustered, "But I asked Rhydian and Maddy to come along and I can't just abandon them now."

"It's ok if you don't want to go," Maddy added, appearing in the doorway, "Rhydian and I will be going whether or not you and Xander go, I need to talk to the recruitment team about jobs in Canada. After all Rhydian and I both need to get jobs so we can provide for the babies and hopefully get a place of our own."

Jana pulled out her cell phone, "What do I say, Maddy? He's probably already getting ready."

"At three in the afternoon?" Ceri asked in disbelief, "Look I know you and Xander wanted to go to this event because it will give you two a chance to do something normal but there are better ways to spend you're Saturday evening."

"But I told him that I really wanted to go," Jana protested, "I told him that we never had a prom at school and he said it was just like a prom for adults."

"According to Gerwyn it really isn't," Ceri replied, "He's not going this year and neither am I. Apparently most of the evening is spent talking to members of the management that you've never met before in your life and trying to convince them to give you pay rise, whatever that is."

"But what if Xander gets nominated for an award?" Jana asked, "He said it was an awards evening too."

"Well according to your uncle they send out the nominations weeks before the event," Ceri said, "So unless Xander is keeping quiet about it then I don't think he's been nominated, although he should be."

"He would have told me," Jana replied, "Even with everything going on, he would have said something I'm sure."

Jana pressed the button on her phone to call Xander.

"Hello," he said after two rings.

"Hi," Jana replied, "I was just calling about tonight. I was wondering if perhaps, well I mean not unless, I was wondering if maybe you wanted to do something else instead of going to the networking event. If you want to go then I'll still go with you."

Xander laughed, "Well actually, there is something more exciting happening tonight."

"What?" Jana asked eagerly.

"Well, I'll tell you about it when I arrive," Xander replied.

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

"I wish you'd tell me what the surprise is," Jana complained as she climbed into the car.

"But then it wouldn't be a surprise," Xander argued, "Don't worry, you'll love it."

"So when did you change your mind about the networking event?" Jana asked as Xander pulled out of the driveway. Maddy and Rhydian had left for Segolia half an hour ago, after Maddy had spent an hour trying to force Rhydian to wear a suit- and eventually winning.

"Well, the thing is, there isn't actually a networking event," Xander explained.

"Wait, what?" Jana asked in shock, "Xander, you have to tell me what's going on? I'm getting worried now."

"It'll be fine, Jana," Xander reassured her, "We're almost there."

Five minutes later Xander stopped the car outside of Bradlington High School.

"Ok," Jana said in a long drawn out way, "You really need to start explaining."

"Well," Xander said, taking Jana's hand gently in his, "You mentioned something very important the other day and I couldn't help but be a little upset. You see even my school with its two hundred students, and no girls, had its final year prom and so I thought to myself that it was only right that your year should have a prom too. So I rang up the headmaster and I contacted the Ks and Ellie and this is the culmination of a week's hard work."

"Xander, you're amazing," Jana exclaimed before hugging him.

"Don't thank me, thank Ellie and the Ks," Xander replied, "This was pretty fast paced, even for my sister, and it was the Kafe that agreed to supply all of the food. I just want you to be happy Jana, and I just want us to be normal, if only for one night."

Jana smiled, "You know I just realised something."

Xander nodded for her to go on.

"If there had been a final year prom you wouldn't have been allowed to go with me," Jana replied, "I guess I could have smuggled you in, but then everyone would have been all like 'he doesn't go here!'."

Xander laughed at the mean girls quote, before taking Jana's hand in his, "Shall we?"

Jana nodded, "If we don't then Ellie will kill us."

"Well then we should get going immediately," Xander replied, before walking around to open Jana's door, "Miss Vilkas?"

Jana rolled her eyes, "I told you not to call me that, you know I don't like to be associated with Jane, even if she is sort of nice now."

"But it doesn't seem right to just call you Jana," Xander replied, "It seems impolite."

"Oh, just shut up!" Jana replied before kissing him.

Xander grabbed Jana's hand and they went running towards the sports hall. They could hear speakers blaring out disco music and the ground shook beneath them. Xander lead Jana through one of the fire exit doors into a small corridor where Maddy, Rhydian, Shannon, Tom and Ellie were waiting.

"Surprise!" they yelled as Jana looked around in shock.

"You all did this for me?" Jana asked in disbelief.

"Of course we did," Rhydian replied.

"Come on, we need to get you ready," Ellie said.

"It's ok, Ellie," Jana said looking down at her faded T shirt and jeans, "I already dressed up a bit."

"Jana, Jana, Jana," Ellie said shaking her head, "That is not dressing up, come on, half of the prom experience is the dressing up."

Jana rolled her eyes, "Xander, please save me."

"I don't have a death wish," Xander replied, "I know better than to stop my sister."

Jana sighed, "I'll try not to be too long."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

Rhydian watched as Xander paced nervously.

"It's just a king and queen dance," Rhydian replied, "Trust me Jana is far worse at dancing than you can possibly be. In the wild they do this thing called feeling the music, that's the closest thing they have to dancing, basically someone bangs a drum whilst people jump up and down and throw themselves all over the place. At least Jana's not that bad, but she still doesn't really get dancing."

Xander half smiled, "It's not that, I promise."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

Jana coughed loudly as the cloud of perfume hit her in the face.

"It's just a little bit of freesia," Ellie replied, "My favourite perfume actually, I think even Bryn likes it."

"I doubt it," Maddy replied.

"I didn't know you and Bryn were so close," Jana said, "Sharing perfumes, what else? Are you watching America's top model together and making homemade facials too?"

"Oh, yeah totally," Ellie said, "He's totally into manicures and we spend hours sitting around reading Seventeen. Shut up, Jana, Bryn's actually a nice guy and he deserves to have someone looking out for him, it can't be easy raising a daughter all on his own."

"I think you'll find that it's Ceri raising Olwenna," Jana replied.

"Well anyway," Ellie replied, pulling out a set of hair straighteners which Jana eyed with fear, "He already promised me dance tonight."

"Really?" Jana asked in shock.

"Yeah, well I sort of harassed him into letting me dance with him," Ellie answered, "So I guess that still counts."

"It counts if you don't straighten my hair," Jana replied.

"But," Ellie began to protest.

"I told Xander I'd only be a few minutes," Jana replied, "It takes over an hour to straighten my hair."

"Oh, ok," Ellie replied, "I guess its Xander's fault for not bringing you here earlier."

"I look great anyway," Jana said admiring the emerald green dress she was wearing that was covered with sequins around the waist.

"Thanks," Ellie and Maddy said in unison.

"Now, come on," Ellie said, leading Jana down the corridor, "Before Xander and Rhydian demolish all the food."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

"They even have fizzy worms!" Jana exclaimed in joy, "Xander, this is just amazing."

"Thanks, Jana," Xander said, "The fizzy worms were almost more important than the music, well in truth they were just as important. Anything for you."

Jana blushed, "I don't deserve this."

"Of course you do," Xander said, brushing a strand of hair away from her face, "You most definitely do."

"Thank you," Jana said, before kissing him, "This is unbelievable."

"Well it's a shame we couldn't get DJ Darby," Shannon said appearing next to them, "But at least it's not Mr Jeffries."

Jana and Xander looked up to see Tom, standing next to the decks and speakers.

"I'm glad Tom is enjoying himself, but if he wants to dance with you then just tell him to let me know," Xander said.

"See you actually like performing now," Jana replied, "I can't believe the band's first performance is next month."

"What's your band's name?" Shannon asked.

"We haven't decided yet," Xander admitted, "We're trying to make it something about Exeter but all we can think of is Jurassic Havoc or White and Black Crosses. Neither of them really apply to Exeter I don't think."

"I told you Jurassic Havoc sounds good, I mean for a rock band," Jana replied.

"I guess it's better than Rock Solid Panda or Lawn Chair Crisis," Ellie said appearing next to them, "Although Millennium Lint isn't too bad I guess. They're Simon's band's names- you should know that Jana and Xander, how many times have I told you about the Mortal Instruments?"

"Too many," Xander replied, "Look there's Bryn, why don't you do dance with him?"

Ellie smiled before darting off.

"Jana, are you sure I won't be arrested for animal cruelty for doing that?" Xander asked sheepishly.

Jana laughed, "Well I won't tell anyone if you agree to dance with me."

Shannon laughed, "You two are so adorable, go on, I'll go and find Maddy and Rhydian, make sure they're not doing anything too raunchy."

Maddy and Rhydian were kissing behind the stage when Shannon found them, and it looked like they had been there a while. She didn't know whether or not to disturb them, but the most important part of the evening was coming up and she needed their help.

"Hey, you two!" Shannon called out, "We're about to start."

"You couldn't have given us five more minutes?" Rhydian replied.

"You can make out for the rest of the evening, but if we don't go to schedule then Ellie will kill us," Shannon replied, "Now come on, we need to find Kara so she can make the announcement."

"You know you're going have to beat Rhydian up later," Xander began, "You're actually pretty good at dancing, but the way he was talking."

"Rhydian is just like a brother," Jana replied, "And just as annoying some times."

Xander smiled, "I'm sure Ellie thinks the same thing about me."

The music began to fade out, and Xander and Jana looked up to see Kara standing on the stage.

"I'd like to begin by thanking the staff at the Kafe for providing the food tonight and all the teachers for helping us to organise this prom. And now for the grand announcement- your Prom King and Queen are- drum roll, please- Jana and Xander!"

Jana laughed as Katarina grabbed her hand a pulled her up onto the stage where they placed a plastic tiara on her head and a plastic crown on Xander's. Everyone in the crowd cheered and clapped.

"And now for their dance," Kara said, as Jana and Xander walked into the crowd.

The music began slowly, and Jana smiled as she recognised the song- When I Look to the Sky by Train- her favourite song.

"I promise I didn't know anything," Xander said with a grin.

"Yeah, right," Jana replied, "Not that I'd mind either way."

"Good," Xander said before kissing her and hearing cheers from the crowd.

"Aren't they just adorable?" Kay asked Liam.

"I guess so," he replied, "Although Jimi walked out earlier, I think he wasn't too happy. He did like Jana, despite the way he acted, she was the only one who didn't just put up with whatever he did, I think he's realising that he's lost her forever."

"Poor Jimi," Kay said, "I never knew. Although to be honest, Jana does deserve a nice guy like Xander, Jimi would have just muck her around probably."

"I guess he did make it hard for himself," Liam admitted, "But it wasn't like his father was ever a good role model, he didn't really teach Jimi how to be anything apart from a businessman."

"I'm sure it will all work out," Kay replied, "And don't think I didn't notice you checking out Ellie Marten over there."

"I wasn't," Liam argued, "Ok, maybe just a little bit, but every single guy in the room was. She'll probably end marrying Harry Averwood and living in LA in a mansion, she's the kind of girl who could have any guy she wants."

"Yeah, I can't help but be a bit jealous of her, even though she's really sweet," Kay said, "Everyone at school likes her- apparently she's in the running for head girl, I'm sure she'll get it."

The music began to fade and Jana and Xander stood facing each other smiling.

Rhydian looked over at them trying to betray what he knew but giving Xander a subtle thumbs up.

Nervously Xander kneeled on the floor in front of Jana, pulling a small box out of the pocket of his jacket.

Jana went bright red as she became aware of what was going on and struggled to breathe steadily, her heart racing and pounding in her ears. Rhydian grinned goofily, and Jana knew instantly that he knew all about what Xander was going to do.

Jana tried to remain calm as she looked at Xander's sapphire eyes that were filled with happiness.

"Jana," Xander began in a somewhat trembling voice, "Will you marry me?"


	36. Chapter 36

"Of course I want to," Jana replied, before kissing Xander. Of course she wanted to marry Xander, it was what she'd wanted all along, however she still felt uneasy. They had only been together roughly three months, and then there was the attack… to Jana it felt like she was being asked to run when she could barely walk, and worse still she felt cornered by her friends as if she had to just go along with everything.

Everyone cheered and Rhydian and Maddy hugged both of them before Ellie came rushing over and, of course, demanding that she would be the one to organise the wedding (well, all of the weddings) and that if they tried to stop her then all hell would break loose.

Jana smiled as joyfully as she could despite her anxieties and spent most of the remainder of the night dancing and talk with her friends. She knew she should have asked to talk to Xander in private, no one would have raised an eyebrow about that. Of course she wanted to marry him, but she just wasn't ready to stop being his girlfriend and start being his fiancé.

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

"It's not going to fit," Jana announced as Rhydian struggled to zip up the suitcase. Rhydian and Maddy had stayed for well over two months now- much longer than they'd originally planned- and had accumulated a large amount of gifts, new clothes from the many shopping trips Ellie had forced them to go on and some baby items that Jana had already bought for them (with the promise that she'd post more to them later on).

"It is," Rhydian argued as he sat on the suitcase, finally managing to close it, "See."

"I wish you would have stayed for your birthday," Jana replied, "And for Yule- I mean Christmas."

"I have to go back and get a job, and Maddy misses her family," Rhydian said, "It won't be the same without you and my family around me, I don't think I'll ever adjust to not treading on empty fizzy worm packets."

Jana stuck out her tongue, "And stealing your Cheetos."

"How could I ever forget?" Rhydian asked, "Well we still have this evening. I'm sure you'll love bowling."

It had been Maddy's idea that her, Rhydian, Jana and Xander went bowling and then went somewhere nice for dinner. Jana of course had no idea what bowling was, and from what she could gather it sounded like lobbing balls with holes in them down a road and knocking things over.

"After all," Rhydian continued, "I won't be long before we have kids."

"For you maybe," Jana said glumly.

Rhydian ruffled her hair, "I'm sure you and Xander will, I mean if Dr Whitewood doesn't find a way then you two will probably adopt."

Jana's eyes glistened with tears and Rhydian looked at her in confusion, he thought Jana wanted nothing more than to be a mother, but then again she had just lost her baby and maybe it was the wrong thing to say.

"Jana," Rhydian said, putting a comforting arm around her shoulders.

"I don't know what to do," Jana said in a chocked voice, "I've made a mess of everything. Of course I want to marry Xander but it's all just moving too fast and I'm only sixteen and I don't know if I'm ready yet. And then there was the attack, and Xander and I- we don't even live in the same place anymore. I wanted to tell him but I just couldn't, not with everyone there."

Rhydian let out a sigh, "Jana, it's ok. Trust me, last night wasn't about trying to force you to say yes, the only reason why Xander decided to ask you at prom and not at a nice little restaurant was because he was scared he would get nervous and stumble over his words and make a mess of it, he was ready to ask you last night and so he just asked you because he thought if he didn't then then it would be harder later on. Also, it's not like the wild pack, when someone wants to marry someone in the human world they ask them and then they often wait months or years until they get married, Xander will be more than happy to wait until you're ready. But you need to talk to him about all of this."

"What happened when you proposed to Maddy?" Jana inquired.

Rhydian laughed, "Well what you have to understand is that Maddy won't finish school in Canada until she's eighteen- she's decided that she wants to stay on at high school and work part time for Segolia, after the babies are born- but she has lot of friends in senior year. The night I proposed to Maddy, well it was after a house party, we'd left early deciding to go to a restaurant, and to be honest I was a little bit drunk- which was intentional because I knew I would panic over the words if I was sober. At first Maddy thought I was just fooling around and said we should head home so I could sleep, I had to ask her five times before she realised I was serious and then of course she said yes."

Jana laughed, "Of course you were drunk."

"You can shut up, Jana," Rhydian replied, "I remember my first night with wild pack when we had that home brewed beer and you ended up stumbling into my tent at three in the morning asking me how to find a toaster and what they were used for."

Jana blushed, "I didn't know I was that bad, I mean I can remember falling over some tent pegs but I thought that was it. I'm surprised my father didn't punish you for it."

"We suffered enough the next morning," Rhydian recalled, "And Mum punished me. I guess even some wild wolfbloods have rules about underage drinking."

"Dad never did," Jana replied, "He only ever told me I wasn't allowed to drink anything Meinir brewed because it would likely have all kinds of unmentionable things in it."

"Yeah, I won't be drinking pack brew anytime soon," Rhydian added, "You should probably start getting ready for the double date night, I know how long you girls can take."

Jana rolled her eyes, before heading towards the door, "Not as long as you do."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

"So what you do is you bend your knees and then you bring your arm back and then you let go of the ball and make sure it doesn't go down the sides of lane," Xander explained, "If it does we can always put the barriers up."

"Yeah, but that's cheating," Jana protested, as she tried to aim accurately. The first few times hadn't gone too well, she'd stepped over the line the first time and then picked up a ball that was too heavy and ended up falling over. She let go of the ball and watched as is slowly drifted from side to side before knocking over six of the bottles- Jana couldn't remember their proper names.

Jana looked up at the scoreboard, Rhydian was in the lead followed by Xander and then Maddy and then her. Jana was going to change that, there was no way she was just going to let Rhydian win.

They took in turn watching and cheering each other on, in between their goes they ate hotdogs and burgers (although Xander warned them not to spoil their dinner they had reassured him that wasn't possible for wolfbloods).

Finally they reached the final set of goes and much to Jana's irritation Rhydian was eight points in the lead- at least he had finished playing now- but now she was in second place with Xander close in third and Maddy in fourth. Jana was impressed that Xander had managed to stay out of last place the whole time, wolfbloods definitely had a lot of the skills necessary to play bowling.

Jana crouched low, eyeing up the centre bottle the way she would a deer if she were trying to shoot an arrow, behind she heard Rhydian laughing at her intense concentration but she didn't let it distract her.

"Oh, hurry up," Rhydian nagged light-heartedly as Jana released the ball and it sped in a straight line towards the centre bottle making all of the bottles fall over.

Jana jumped up and down cheering before yelling, "Who's the alpha, huh, who's the alpha?"

"Jana!" Rhydian snapped, "Not quite so loud yeah? And you're not actually an alpha, even if you have sort of won, come on let Xander and Maddy have their turn."

"Does the winner win something?" Jana asked.

"Yes, a gagging order," Rhydian said, "Jana, you gave me a headache with all that cheering."

"Aw, you're just a sore loser," Jana replied, "Just the way you always were when we played alpha of the pack and I always won."

"You didn't always win," Rhydian replied, "Your father made it illegal for us to beat you in games."

"But I'd still have won," Jana argued.

Rhydian shook his head, cheering as Xander knocked over all of the bottles too, and securing third place-two points behind Rhydian. Maddy then took one of the balls and threw it, knocking over five of the bottles and came in fourth, and one point behind Xander.

"That was close," Maddy said, a little tired, "I'm starving, I bet you all are too."

Xander nodded and so did Jana.

"I don't know how you can still be hungry," Xander joked to Jana as they changed their shoes, "You ate like five hotdogs."

"Four," Jana corrected him, "And I'm always hungry. Do you remember that first meal at work and how surprised you were that I could eat so much?"

"I know, I thought you'd packed enough for a week," Xander replied, "What was it? Chicken drumsticks, roast ham, sausage rolls, pork pies- oh, and not forgetting the three bags of fizzy worms."

"Hey, no fair," Jana sulked, "Those bags of fizzy worms are kids size portions- three of them is an adult size portion."

"That's rich coming from someone who barely scrapped past five foot," Rhydian replied.

"Oh stop winging," Jana answered, "Just because you didn't win."

"We should come back some time when we're next over here," Maddy suggested, "We could play boys vs. girls. Although I'm sure Jana and I would win."

"I wouldn't be so sure of that," Rhydian replied.

"You really rate yourself don't you?" Maddy answered.

"You know I do," Rhydian replied, "And don't pretend you don't like it."

Maddy rolled her eyes, "Let's just get going, Adrian and Cassidy don't appreciate your jibes any more than I do."

"I'm not sure about that," Rhydian replied, helping Maddy with her coat, "Adrian's going to grow up to be just like me."

"Don't worry, I've already looked up the number for the SWAT team," Jana replied.

"Thanks, Jana," Maddy replied, "Well Cassidy is going to be like her mother. All sensible and well behaved."

"She's a Morris," Rhydian replied, "Sensible and well behaved are alien concepts to us."

"Well if they behave like you used to at school they'll be grounded forever," Maddy replied.

"I wonder what our kids would be like," Jana mused to herself quietly, before brushing away the idea.

"I can imagine them being little brown haired and ginger haired kids with sapphire eyes and green eyes," Xander replied, "And they'd be running around in this big old farmhouse in the country making mud pies and playing alpha of the pack. And we'd constantly have no food in the cupboards and have packets of fizzy worms everywhere and we'd spend every weekend baking or hiking through the woods. And we'd go on camping holidays ever year so they could learn more about their Mummy's life in the wild pack and how to find their way without a compass."

"That sounds brilliant," Maddy replied, "We should try to have a camping holiday every year, no matter what we're doing or where we are we should all try to meet up for a week each summer."

"Yeah it sounds like a plan," Rhydian agreed, "I'm sure Shannon and Tom will agree with us too."

"Yeah it sounds cool," Xander replied, "What do you think Jana?"

Jana smiled, "Yeah it sounds great."

Maddy and Rhydian began to head towards the bus stop, Xander and Jana following a few feet behind them.

"Xander?" Jana began suddenly.

"Yeah," Xander replied, putting an arm around Jana's shoulders.

"I know I should have mentioned this earlier," Jana began, "And I know I definitely want to marry you but I was wondering if maybe we could wait a while before getting married, it's just I don't think I'm ready yet."

"Of course," Xander replied, "I know everything's been fast with us since day one and it's been a little crazy. The reason why I asked now is because, Jana, I really do want to marry you a lot, and I know we're not living together yet and we're not as close as we used to be, but we're getting there, I know that much. We've been through possibly the hardest things that a couple can go through and we've weathered all of that. If those things weren't a test of the strength of our love then I don't know what is. What I'm trying to say is if we can get through everything we've been through already, then I trust it won't be long before we're back to the way we are before, and even if you never want, you know, again in your life then that's ok, I'll be fine with that because I love you and that's all that matters. And I don't want you think that because we're not doing all of that that there's anything wrong, because I'm happy just having you in my life and being able to love you and I think it would be ungrateful for me to ask for anything else."

Jana smiled, "I'm going to try to be the way I was before, but I'm glad you'll still love me either way."

"Of course I will," Xander replied, like it was the most insanely obvious thing in the world.

Jana stood on tiptoes to kiss Xander, and wrapped her arms around him, she could feel his fingers wrapped up in her curly hair and completely and utterly felt at ease around him. This was where she belonged and she would try as hard as she could to make everything perfect for the both of them.


	37. Chapter 37

**7 months later**

_Jana, I need you to get on a plane to Canada immediately. Maddy's going to kill me. I'm being deadly serious Jana. I need you to rescue me. Help me, please! Rhydian X_

Jana burst out laughing earning a quizzical look from Xander who had just entered their living room with two steaming cups of coffee. Jana texted back quickly.

_Finally! Jana XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX_

"Jana?" Xander asked as he sat down on the sofa next to her, "What's going on?"

"Maddy wants to kill Rhydian," Jana explained grinning.

"That's a good thing?" Xander asked sceptically, "Oh, you mean she's having the babies. Wait Adrian and Cassidy are being born! Finally!"

"I know right," Jana said, reaching for her cup of coffee, "Only a month and a half late aren't they?"

"Yeah, talk about taking your time," Xander replied, "I guess we'll have to call Segolia, they said they'd arrange for us to fly out there when the babies were born."

"It's great of them to offer," Jana said, "But technically I've been asked to go on a humanitarian aid rescue mission to save Rhydian from Maddy, they can't refuse that."

Xander smiled, "Shouldn't that be wolfblood-itarian? I'm sure Rhydian will be fine, well after a few months of sleepless nights he should be fine, before that he'll probably be a zombie."

_It's not funny, Jana! I swear if she could she'd wolf out right now and eat me! Rhydian X_

Jana smiled, "I swear Maddy's going to make him pay for this. Come on, you ring Segolia and I'll make sure the rest of the pack knows."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

Jana lugged her heavy bag towards the small plane that Segolia had hired for them. They were planning to be in Canada for roughly a week or so but they had already scheduled their camping holiday for the beginning of June to coincide with Jana's seventeenth birthday.

"Here, let me help you with that," Xander said, taking Jana's bag, "How much are you taking Jana?"

"Most of it is presents," Jana explained.

Xander nodded, "I should have guessed."

"It's amazing!" Shannon exclaimed, hugging Jana.

"What that the babies have finally arrived or that Rhydian is still alive?" Tom asked.

"Both I guess," Jana replied.

"Where's Ceri and Gerwyn?" Xander asked, "I thought they wouldn't miss this for the world."

"Apparently they're buying a card," Shannon replied in confusion, "I guess it's taking them a while."

"I bet Uncle Gerwyn wants to get a really insulting and vulgar one," Jana replied, "But Auntie Ceri's going to want to buy something sweet. They're probably arguing about it."

Bryn appeared suddenly, walking towards the plane with a small rucksack, Ellie following alongside him. The two of them had been dating for a couple of months now. They could still remember the day that Bryn and Ellie had told them they were couple, it had unfortunately coincided with April 1st so no one had taken them seriously until Bryn had threatened to wolf out. They couldn't believe it, they thought Bryn would be the last person to date a human, but Xander wasn't so surprised- he knew what his sister was like, that she could charm any boy she wanted.

"Sorry we're late," Ellie said, "We stopped off at Starbucks on the way. Can you believe that Bryn had never been to Starbucks before?"

"Yes," Jana replied as Bryn smiled somewhat in relief.

"I think you enjoyed that raspberry mocha more than you're letting on Bryn darling," Ellie said, putting a hand gently on his arm.

Jana rolled her eyes discretely whilst wondering what on earth had made Bryn decide to go out with her.

"Ellie," Xander said, "I'm not going to be a third wheel for the next eight hours, none of us are, so please keep the PDAs to a minimum."

"What's PDAs?" Bryn asked.

"I will if you and Jana do," Ellie answered.

"I'm surprised you got time off of school," Jana answered, "Especially this close to exams."

"It's the school holidays, Jana," Ellie replied, "It's only been a year! How can you forget that?"

"Oh yeah, my bad," Jana replied.

"Sorry, we're hear don't worry!" Gerwyn yelled as he ran towards the plane, "Are they really expected us all to fit in that?"

"You can blame Gerwyn for us being late," Ceri began angrily, "First he couldn't decide on what to pack, then he spent about two hours in the gift shop trying to find a card that said 'Welcome to Hell'."

"It's a noble and ancient tradition for all members of the Morris family to be fashionably late," Gerwyn explained, "And I'm glad to see that my descendants are starting off on the right paw, in true Morris fashion."

"Well if they are following true Morris fashion then we should all be worried," Ceri replied, "Do you remember what Rhydian was like when he was two?"

"You mean the incident with the pheasant," Gerwyn replied, "Well at least we don't need to worry about that- there aren't any pheasants in that part of Canada."

"What happened with the pheasant?" Xander asked.

"Trust me, you don't want to know," Jana replied, "I don't think my father had ever considered exiling a toddler before that point."

"Well come on then," Gerwyn announced, "Let's not keeping Adrian and Cass waiting."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

Gerwyn bounced Cass up and down on his knee until she looked ready to vomit and Jana quickly took her out of her uncle's hands. Being born nearly two months late it wasn't surprising that Adrian and Cass we're big babies and they had already started devouring the meat milkshakes Jana had made at a startling rate.

Adrian gulped down the milkshake, and although he was far too young to grin, there was a sort of smirking look in his blue eyes that reminded Jana of Rhydian. It might have been the fact that he already a short tuft of white blond hair that also helped Jana see the resemblance.

Cassidy on the other hand was the far more docile of the two usually, although if she wanted something she certainly let them all know. She had large brown eyes that seemed to be searching endlessly around the room trying to take everything in.

"She's so adorable!" Jana announced for the billionth time, "They're both so adorable."

"Thanks Jana," Maddy replied from where she was curled up on the sofa, holding Adrian.

"Why did you give them such human names?" Bryn asked and he stared hungrily at the pig roasting in the oven.

"Adrian and Cassidy are lovely names Bryn." Ellie replied.

"Yeah, for human babies," Bryn complained.

"Cheer up, Bryn," Jana said, as Cassidy rested her head on her aunt's shoulder, "When you're older you can have all the Welsh named babies that you want."

Rhydian smiled, "I'm so glad you could all be here."

"Yeah, because now you don't have to change so many nappies," Gerwyn replied, handing a card to Rhydian, "It's from all of us."

Rhydian laughed as he looked at the card. Welcome to Hell was scrawled in large red letters across the front with drawings of little devils with tridents and pictures of his children glued where the heads of the devils should be. In the background there was a large fire.

"Gerwyn!" Ceri replied in horror, "Maddy and Rhydian aren't going to want to put that up on the mantel piece, are they? Here, here's the nice card we've all signed."

Ceri passed Maddy a pink envelope, which she tore open to reveal a large card with two golden brown teddy bears in baby grows, holding their own little teddy bears.

"That's so sweet of you," Maddy said, "Thank you so much."

"Yeah, thanks guys," Rhydian added, "Come here, Jana, I think Cassidy wants to rest for a bit."

Jana reluctantly passed Cassidy to Rhydian, "But she's too excited to sleep."

"She's already asleep, Jana," Rhydian said, "Don't worry, you'll get to spend more time with her later."

"So how's Stoneybridge?" Maddy asked.

"Same as usual," Shannon replied, "Dr Whitewood and Mr Jeffries are now officially dating."

"And Jimi won the young entrepreneur of Northumbria award," Tom added, "Not that it wasn't completely foreseeable."

"Segolia's pretty much the same as usual," Jana replied, "Josh, Mary and Leanne have all settled in well, although given their new posts we don't really seem them a lot anymore. We've had a few incidences with some wolfblood conspiracy theorists- honestly, I have to you the flat earth one, it's hilarious. How's Canada?"

"Cold," Rhydian said, "It snows almost every day still."

"You wait until the little devils are old enough to walk," Gerwyn replied, "They'll be bringing snow into the house, constantly asking you to build snowmen, building igloos."

"What's an igg-glue?" Jana asked.

"It's a house people live in when they live somewhere very cold," Shannon explained.

"So why don't you live in an igg-glue?" Jana asked Rhydian, "Come to think of it, why doesn't the pack live in igg-glues, Wales can be very cold in the winter."

"Don't worry about it," Rhydian replied dismissively.

"Well I think it's presents time," Jana announced, grabbing- or rather dragging- her bag, and sitting down on one of the sofas."

"Jana, how much did you-?" Rhydian asked in shock.

"I didn't want you to end up being poor so I bought you a few things," Jana replied.

"If this is a few, I'm scared to wonder what many is," Tom replied.

"Here," Jana said, passing a present wrapped in yellow teddy bear wrapping paper to Rhydian, "They're going to love this one."

Rhydian could tell there was some soft inside of the wrapping paper and slowly tore into it, as he removed more of the paper he could see that there were two soft toys and he smiled as he saw that they were two little stuffed wolves, much like Jana's own. One of them was a dark brown colour, the other had soft golden fur.

"Jana, thank you so much," Rhydian replied, "They'll love them."

Jana beamed, "I'm sure they will, now come on- there's on thirty-seven- no wait, thirty-eight- more presents to unwrap."


	38. Chapter 38

"Maddy!" Rhydian yelled, "I need help!"

Maddy rolled her eyes and passed her plate to Jana, who happily ate the leftover black pudding.

"It's not that difficult, Rhydian!" Maddy yelled in response.

"Have you tried to change a nappy in a tent before?" Rhydian asked.

"Er, yeah, I have actually," Maddy replied, squeezing in next to him in their small tent. Cass was dozing in her crib whilst Rhydian was trying to change Adrian's nappy, the little baby refusing to lie still.

"I'll do it," Maddy said, "But really it isn't that difficult. Just go and get some breakfast. Mum and Dad are planning on leaving for the beach as soon as we're ready. Tell them we'll be sorted in about fifteen minutes."

Rhydian nodded, walking over to the plastic table where two rashers of bacon and several sausages sat in plastic tubs. Naturally there was no black pudding left- thanks to Jana- but there was some cereal. Rhydian grabbed some of the meat and a bowl of cereal and sat down on one of the logs.

"I'm sure Adrian and Cassidy are excited for their trip to the beach," Jana gushed, "They must be loving their first holiday."

"Yeah," Rhydian replied, "Adrian certainly looked as if he was enjoying watching Daddy trying to put up a tent in the pouring rain."

Jana laughed, "It's not that difficult to put up a tent."

"Of course it isn't for you," Rhydian said, gesturing over at Jana and Xander's tent, "Of course wild wolfblood tents are easier to put up, although technically it's cheating."

"No," Jana argued, "It's called making life easier for yourself."

"Whatever, Jana," Rhydian replied, with a yawn, "At least I'm not the one who's going to be called Auntie Yaya or Nana when the cubs get older."

Jana stuck out her tongue, "At least I don't have to change nappies."

Rhydian sighed, "I hope you get pregnant with Xander's children very very soon. You won't be so quick to laugh at me."

"Yeah, that's not going to happen," Jana grumbled. Despite it being almost nine or so months since Kincaid's attack Jana still wasn't ok with being intimate with Xander. She was happy to share a flat with him and even sleep next to him, but she still wasn't ready for anything more than that. She was glad that Xander never rushed her. And it wasn't as if Segolia was any closer to finding a way that wolfbloods and humans could have children anyway.

"Jana!" Xander called out from where he was sitting next to Cadwr at a nearby bench.

Jana raced over to them, a confused expression on her face as she saw three cups and Xander's phone on the table with a video paused on it.

"You've heard of the cups song haven't you?" Xander asked.

"Yes," Jana said with a grimace. She'd heard of the song roughly a year ago, and Shannon had tried to make her learn all of the moves- it wasn't that difficult to learn but Jana had no idea why humans were so obsessed with that particular song.

"I'm teaching Cadwr," Xander explained, "He's a natural, picked it up in five minutes. He told me that Shannon taught you a while ago."

Jana nodded, "It was quite a while ago. I've probably forgotten it by now. And anyway, Emma and Daniel want to be leaving soon."

"Come on, Jana," Cadwr replied, "I'll buy you ice cream when we get to the beach."

"It better have a flake and sprinkles," Jana demanded before taking one of the cups. She slowly went over the moves, remembering them far more easily than she'd anticipated. She soon was carry out the moves effortlessly and without thinking about it started singing the song.

She stopped when she noticed Xander and Cadwr staring at her and Tom and Shannon also looking at her in shock. Rhydian just smiled, Ceri and Gerwyn also smiling.

"What?" Jana asked, "Quit looking at me like that."

"You never told me you can sing," Xander replied.

"I can't," Jana replied.

"Yes, you absolutely can," Xander replied, "That was amazing."

Jana blushed, "It was nothing."

"You don't remember when you were younger," Rhydian began. "About how you used to sing all of the time- about how we used to play Bards and Surfs with Meinir and Aran."

Xander laughed, "I suppose Meinir came up with that game."

"Yeah," Gerwyn added, "You used to sing all the time, Jana. Arianne always said that it was such a shame that being an alpha doesn't call for much studying of the arts. Then again there aren't really many artistic jobs for wild wolfbloods."

"You could always sing with the band," Xander suggested, "We were all saying the other day about how great it would if some of songs on the new album were performed with a female vocalist."

"No!" Jana exclaimed, "Can everyone stop making such a big deal about this? If you want a female vocalist then ask Shannon."

"But Jana you sing really well," Xander protested.

"It was a mistake," Jana replied, "I didn't mean to."

Xander watched as Jana stormed off towards their tent and started to get up to follow her.

"Wonder what that was all about," Cadwr said quietly.

"Xander," Ceri began, "You should probably leave Jana for a bit, just let her calm down."

"I don't understand," Xander said shaking his head, "You heard her, Jana's great a singing, I don't get why she means by it was a mistake."

"Jana used to sing a lot when she was a little cub," Ceri recalled with a smile, "Mostly the wild wolfblood version of love songs and things like that- well you can probably guess who she was singing them too. When Jana returned to the pack without Rhydian she changed an awful lot. She stopped singing, she didn't play with the other cubs, and she was a completely different person. Things got better when Rhydian lived with the pack for a while but Jana never really went back to the way she was when she was little."

"I didn't know," Xander said, wanting to comfort Jana.

"Jana just needs to deal with the memories," Ceri replied, "At least she knows she has you and Rhydian now and that you'll never leave her."

Xander smiled, "Thank you for stopping me doing something stupid."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

"Jana, what are you doing?" Daniel asked the young girl.

"Adrian and I are building a sandcastle," Jana replied innocently.

"What?" Emma replied in confusion, before turning to her husband, "Adrian can't build a sandcastle. And just look at the mess he's in. We should tell them to stop."

"Look, Jana's an ex-wild wolfblood," Daniel replied, "And yes at times she can be a bit- well, you know. But she's not completely irresponsible."

"Jana," Tom began, as he walked over to where Jana and Adrian were sat around a crumbling sandcastle. Adrian was squishing wet sand in his chubby hands and had sand all over his baby-grow.

"Hi, Tom," Jana said, "Say hello to Uncle Tom, Adrian."

Jana pretended to make Adrian wave.

Tom rolled his eyes, "You know he's only going to end up eating the sand and then bawling his eyes out."

"But Maddy and Rhydian said I could look after him whilst they went to get the ice cream," Jana protested.

"Well, where's Xander anyway?" Tom asked, "I haven't seen him in a while."

"He's off surfing with Ellie, Bryn and Cadwr," Jana answered, "Apparently he and Ellie learnt surfing on a primary school trip to Cornwall and now he's teaching Bryn and Cadwr. He keeps on saying he's going to teach me too but…"

"What's wrong?" Tom asked.

"Well you know wolves aren't supposed to surf, are they?" Jana began.

"Bryn and Cadwr seem to be okay with it," Tom replied, "It's so weird how Bryn's becoming tame essentially, I mean I know he's leaving soon, but still."

"He's leaving?" Jana asked in surprise, "He hasn't told me… or Ellie."

"I suppose they're going to be in a long distance relationship or something like that," Tom said with a hint of scepticism.

"Yeah right," Jana replied, "How easy do you think it is to stay in a long distance relationship anyway? Even before you take into consideration that we're on about an illiterate and traditionalist wolfblood here. He's going to dump Ellie and he's not even thinking about letting her down nicely."

"Xander will bury him alive if he finds out," Tom said.

"Well Bryn will be protected by the fact he's Rhydian's brother," Jana explained, "But Xander will certainly allow Ellie to beat the living daylights out of him. And as far I'm concerned- right on."

"Jana!" Tom exclaimed.

"What?" Jana asked, "He can't just do that to her. And to think my parents were actually considering marrying me off to Bryn."

"No, Jana, I'm not on about that," Tom said quickly.

"But we were just talking about it," Jana replied.

There was a loud cry and Jana looked to see that Adrian's face covered in sand- he'd obvious tried to eat it.

"Go get some water!" Jana yelled at Tom, before carefully moving Adrian out of his baby chair and holding him in her arms, "It's Adrian, it'll be all better soon, I promise."

Rhydian came racing towards them, a concerned and panicked expression on his face.

"We were building sandcastles," Jana said with a croaky voice, "And… and Adrian tried to eat the sand."

Rhydian chuckled a little bit, "We're on a beach, Jana. It was a little bit inevitable that that was going to happen at some point today."

"But I promised I'd look after him," Jana replied, "I bet he thinks I'm the worst aunt in the world."

"No, he doesn't," Rhydian replied as he nodded in thanks to Tom, "And if you think this is bad. Well I left Cass with my Mum and Dad, so I don't want to imagine. They're probably playing sand fairies or something like that."

"Let us deal with this, Rhydian," Emma began, "Why don't you and Jana go and find Xander and the rest of them?"

"Yeah, we'll be able to handle this," Daniel added.

"Thanks," Rhydian said, "Come on Jana, let's go and find the others."

"I told you we should have stopped her," Emma said quietly to Dan as she started to clean up Adrian.

"It's not Jana's fault," Daniel replied, "I told Maddy it was a ridiculous idea to spend the day on the beach with two little babies. This was going to happen. I mean do you remember Dorset with Maddy when she was three, we blamed ourselves so much for that, but kids will be kids and you can't wrap them up in cotton wall."

"I'm not trying to," Emma replied, "I just don't like the idea of Jana looking after our grandchildren."

"She's not a wild wolfblood," Daniel replied, "Not anymore, and she's not stupid either. Besides, from what Ceri tells me, older wild wolfblood cubs tended to baby sit the younger cubs, so Jana probably has more experience in raising children than Rhydian and Maddy do and maybe even more experience than Gerwyn does."

"They're all still cubs aren't they?" Emma responded, "Maddy, Rhydian and Jana aren't exactly completely grown up."

"I don't expect them to be," Daniel replied, "And neither should you. But I think we should make more of an effort with Ceri, Gerwyn, Bryn and Jana. We got off on the wrong paw with them the last time round. And we're pretty much related now so we should at least try, for the cubs' sake."

Emma nodded, "Okay, I'll try."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

"Cadwr, that's brilliant!" Xander yelled, "Come on, Bryn, the water's not that cold!"

"Wolfbloods aren't supposed to swim anyway," Bryn replied, as he walked towards the beach, "They only reason Cadwr and I know how to swim is because Cadwr and Gwyn's old back taught them, and because Meinir pushed me in a river, so I had to learn the hard way."

"So wait, Jana doesn't know how to swim?" Ellie asked, laying her bright pink surfboard down on the sand.

"Of course not," Bryn replied, "Alpha's have far more important things to do than swimming."

"So that's why she didn't want to go surfing," Xander said with understanding, "I thought she was still upset about earlier."

"You should teach her," Bryn suggested, "Jana will probably love surfing, it's actually quite fun."

"See, I told you," Ellie replied, "Xander and I used to go surfing all the time before the accident. I'm glad to see that I can still beat him."

"Oh, shut up!" Xander answered, "That's only because you stuck to the smaller waves."

"I still beat you," Ellie replied, "Hey, it looks like Rhydian and Jana are coming to join us."

"Hi, how's surfing going?" Rhydian asked.

"It's actually pretty cool, if totally unnatural," Bryn said, "And Cadwr's pretty much obsessed with it now."

"I want to go to Newquay for my birthday," Cadwr announced, "It's where all the pro surfers go."

Rhydian ruffled Cadwr's hair, "I'll talk to my Mum and Dad about it."

"Thank you, Rhydian," Cadwr replied.

"I can teach you how to surf if you want," Xander said to Jana.

"Thanks, but I'm not sure I'd be much good at it," Jana replied.

"Look, Bryn told me about how the wild pack prioritises activities," Xander replied tactfully, "I know they didn't put much emphasis on swimming lessons, but I can teach you, if you want."

"I… I'm not sure," Jana replied, "I don't like the idea of learning to swim out here in the ocean."

"I understand," Xander answered, putting an arm around Jana's shoulders and hugging her to his side, "If only they sold coffee at that ice cream stand."

"They have cappuccino flavoured ice cream," Jana suggested.

"It's not really the same thing," Xander replied, "And anyway I'd need the black coffee ice cream, cappuccinos are far too weak for me."

Jana smiled, "It's only one day without coffee."

"Yes, but you're not a caffeine addict," Xander argued, "The things I do for love."

"OMG Xander, Stop quoting the King-slayer," Ellie complained, "You know how much I hate the Lannisters."

"You know Sansa is technically a Lannister now," Xander argued, "And team Stark is well, not really existent anymore."

"No she isn't," Ellie argued, "And at least Robb wasn't off having demon babies with some crazy woman."

"Don't you dare insult Stannis the Mannis," Xander replied, "He's the one true King of Westeros, the Seven Kingdoms and the Andals."

"Do you have any idea what they're on about?" Rhydian asked Jana.

"Unfortunately, yes," Jana replied, "Xander and I spent every Monday evening for the past two months watching Game of Thrones, it's a really big deal. He's even made me convert to team Stannis."

Rhydian laughed, "Apparently that's better than being a Lannister."

"The only reason you're team Stark is because you have a crush on the actor who plays Robb," Xander argued.

"Well, maybe," Ellie admitted.

"But I thought you were my girlfriend," Bryn said in a miserable voice, "You can't have crushes on other men."

"Bryn, it's not like that," Rhydian tried to explain, "A lot of girls have crushes on actors, it doesn't actually mean they want to go out with them or that they love their boyfriends any less."

"Are you on about the fact that Maddy is a Cumberbabe?" Jana replied.

"Girls can be very confusing at times," Rhydian replied, "Now come on let's get back to the others."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

Adrian and Cass dozed next to each other in their cot which was illuminated by the dim sunset light. Jana was perched silently in front of them trying to take photos, but her hands were shaky and the pictures so far had been blurry. She pressed the button again, and cursed as the flash came on, waking up the babies and they began to grizzle.

Rhydian laughed, "Come on, Jana, there'll be plenty of time for photos later, let them sleep for a bit."

"But they looked so cute together then," Jana replied, "I had to take a photo."

"Well save some room on your camera for the rest of the week," Rhydian replied, "Remember it's your birthday tomorrow, so make sure you get enough sleep because we don't want you going all morwal on us."

Jana laughed, "Good night, bro. Good night little cubs."

"Good night, Jana," Rhydian replied.


	39. Chapter 39

Xander watched as Jana slept peacefully, her head resting on her arm and her other arm wrapped around the wolf toy. She mumbled a little in her sleep- a sign that she was soon going to wake up.

Xander crept out of the tent as quietly as he could, taking his rucksack with him. Outside everyone was trying to be quiet as they could as they cooked the breakfast and arranged their cards and presents on the table.

"We have about five minutes," Xander warned them his a hushed voice, before taking the presents out of his rucksack.

"Ok, but who's going light the candles on the cake?" Ellie asked, "Oh wait, my bad, we don't need them. But how's Jana going to make a birthday wish?"

"Ellie, what are you on about?" Bryn asked, swiping a rasher of bacon from one of the plates.

Xander rolled his eyes, "Come on, we don't have long."

In the tent, Jana was beginning to wake up, the sun making the tent glow. She expected to see Xander but then saw the note that he'd left:

_Happy Birthday, my beautiful Jana! Lots of Love, Xander XXXXXXXX P.S Come outside._

Jana smiled to herself before climbing out of her sleeping bag. She grabbed her coat and then climbed out of the tent.

"Happy Birthday!" everyone yelled as a speechless Jana took in everything around her.

One of the tables was covered in presents wrapped in bright sparkly paper with giant bows. The other table was covered in food- all the usual wolfblood favourites and some of the human food that Jana liked. In the centre was a giant chocolate cake with strawberry icing and a picture of a red wolf on it, surrounded by little fizzy worms.

She was overjoyed and ran towards them excitedly, "Thank you so much, this is amazing! This is the best birthday ever!"

"What, even better than your second birthday?" Gerwyn replied, "When the pheasant incident occurred."

Jana laughed, "I can't remember my second birthday, but I'm sure this birthday will be even better than that."

"It will definitely be," Ceri replied.

"You never actually told us what happened with the pheasant," Emma added, "It must have been terrible. I remember you telling us Rhydian was nearly exiled, but wait, he must have just been a toddler."

"Well I don't think age would stop Rhydian," Daniel said light-heartedly, "You know what he's like."

"Oh shut up, Dad. You must have really upset Alric to make him consider throwing a toddler out," Maddy said to Rhydian, who shrugged as innocently as he could.

"Oh, he most certainly did," Jana began, smiling as she noticed the large packet of black pudding on the table, "Father had ordered Meinir and Aran to go with the rest of the pack elders to gather special meat for the feast. I'd been sick on my first birthday, so I hadn't been able to eat anything, and well as far as a wild pack in concerned, the first birthday that a wolfblood heir eats meat is supposed to be symbolic or something like that. So there was going to be this big feast. Father usually only ate rabbit, wild boar or deer, he wasn't really a fan of pheasant, but he decided we should give it a go, because it couldn't be that awful- Uncle Gerwyn sometimes had pheasant and he always said it was ok. The only problem is Rhydian and I, well Rhydian had given me this one particular pheasant as a birthday gift, but my father didn't know that and he ordered Meinir and Aran to kill it. We tried to protest- but well, you know Meinir. I told Rhydian it was ok, that I wouldn't have been able to take the pheasant with me anyway when moved camp a few days later. But Rhydian decided that he would protest about it- so he dressed up the pheasant to make it look as grotesque as possible, with berries and its feathers and things like that. Father declared it sacrilegious and took it as an insult against our family, he even made Rhydian stand trial, he was so angry. It's only when I told my father that I'd run away with Rhydian if he exiled him that my father decided not to punish Rhydian- he could tell I was being serious."

Xander smiled, "Your father being frightened of a two year old? That would have been something to see."

"Yeah, you think Alric's all big and scary," Gerwyn began, "But when it came to Arianne and Jana he'd literally let them do anything- hence, cake, Arianne actually loved chocolate cake. We must have been the only pack in Wales that ate cake as well as meat and plants."

"Well that's a good step in the right direction," Ellie began, "Maybe when Bryn and I go back to stay with the pack for a while then we'll introduce them to Starbucks."

Bryn looked like he was about to wolf out, "Yeah, Ellie, why don't we discuss that later on?"

"Yeah, we will," Xander replied, "This is supposed to be Jana's big day. Where did we put all the plates and cutlery? Jana needs to cut the cake."

Jana smiled as Xander passed a plastic knife.

"Now don't forget to make a wish," Rhydian said.

"I wish…" Jana began.

"You're not supposed to say it out loud," Ellie interrupted, "It's bad luck."

"Ok," Jana replied, "But I bet everyone can guess what I'm wishing for anyway."

"Jana, come on, I really want to try that cake," Cadwr protested.

"Ok, ok," Jana said, ruffling his hair. She cut the cake carefully, wishing for happiness and safety for her friends and family, and that they would always have whatever they wanted.

"The birthday girl always gets the first slice," Xander announced, "It's traditional."

"Since when?" Bryn asked.

"Since forever," Rhydian asked, "Even in the wild pack, the alpha and his heir are served first."

Jana took a bite of the cake and found that it was absolutely delicious.

Xander smiled, "I'm glad you like the cake."

"It's amazing," Jana said, between bites, "You didn't have to go to all this trouble."

"Nonsense," Xander said, "You only turn seventeen once, and no matter what you're an alpha's daughter, so you deserve a birthday worthy of a princess."

Jana blushed, "Well, thank you, my kind prince."

"Presents time!" Shannon announced.

"You all really shouldn't have gone to all this trouble," Jana said, "Thank you so much."

"Well I was originally going to wrap the presents in newspaper," Gerwyn began, "But then your aunt threatened to throw me over that cliff."

"And we all offered to help," Tom added.

"What are packs for, eh?" Gerwyn asked.

Jana laughed, "Uncle Gerwyn you should have realised that would happen."

Rhydian passed Jana a large red present and she looked at the tag on it.

"Thanks Shannon," Jana said, before tearing the paper gently to reveal a sparkly emerald dress, "This is so beautiful."

"Open mine next," Cadwr ordered, passing a sparkly gold present to Jana.

Jana opened it, to reveal a huge bag of fizzy worms.

Jana laughed, "Thanks Cadwr."

Cadwr smiled, "I'm surprised you didn't buy them when you were living with the wild pack."

"Meinir would have usurped me," Jana explained.

"Here," Ceri said passing Jana another present, this time wrapped in green paper- or was it? It looked an awful lot like leaves, "Just before I forget."

Jana looked at the message attached and smiled as everything began to make sense.

_Hapee Birthdaaa, Hope u liek the prayzent, lots off luv, Aran, Maynear and ur Farfar. _

_P.S. Hope to c u soon, lettle alfa. _

"I think Aran's getting better at writing," Jana announced.

"That's better?" Gerwyn questioned.

"What is it?" Ellie asked, looking at the present, "It smells awful."

"Let's hope it's not pheasant," Maddy replied.

Jana unwrapped the leave to reveal a large joint of lamb, and licked her lips ravenously.

Rhydian laughed, "That's wild wolfblood presents for you."

"And now something a bit more normal," Ellie said passing her a present wrapped in blindingly sparkly pink paper. The tag showed that the present was from Bryn and Ellie, they'd clearly started that whole couples thing in earnest.

Jana unwrapped it to show a large pink bag which contained several bottles of nail polish, and numerous different brands of makeup and perfume.

"Thanks Ellie, Bryn," Jana replied.

"I tried to make sure that I got your all of your favourites," Ellie began, "But this one (she pointed at Xander) wasn't being much help."

"I told you," Xander replied, "Jana doesn't really wear all that much makeup."

"It's a great present," Jana said sincerely.

Ellie beamed whilst Bryn let out a small and somewhat apologetic smile.

"Here open this one," her aunt said, passing her another sparkly gold present. The message on the tag was bewildering- happy birthday, and try to not to kill anyone or anything. Lots of love, Uncle Gerwyn and Auntie Ceri xxx.

Jana smiled, before opening the present. Inside was a small brown envelope and inside of that was a green card and a green piece of paper. She looked at Rhydian for an explanation.

"It's a driver's licence," Rhydian explained, "In the UK you can learn to drive for the age of seventeen."

"Oh, I get it- 'try not kill anything or anyone.'" Jana said with a laugh, "Thanks, I guess it will give everyone a break from driving me around everywhere."

"You know I don't mind," Xander began, "But it would be a good idea for you to learn."

"Here open ours' next," Maddy said passing Jana a present wrapped in blue paper.

The tag read: Hope you have a great day, Lots of Love, Maddy, Rhydian, Adrian and Cassidy.

Jana unwrapped the present to show two photo frames- one contained a sketch of the pack and the other a sketch of everyone- including the cubs- in wolf form. Behind the frames was a smaller present wrapped in sparkly green and blue paper, with happy birthday written in bright gold across it and a message attached to it.

_Thanks for being the best auntie ever and thank you so much for the lovely wolf toys. We really hope you like this and have a great birthday. Try not to eat too many fizzy worms. Daddy still remembers when you were little cubs and ate too many of them and threw up all over Jane's new sofa, haha, that would have been something to see._

_Lots of Love, the ickle cubby wubbies. XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX_

Jana laughed, before ripping the paper to show a journal was a picture of a large red wolf on the front of it.

Jana smiled, "Thank you so much, the presents are awesome."

Rhydian laughed, "Phew! You don't know how long it took Adrian and Cassidy to choose a present. I swear they're going to be a nightmare when they're older."

Maddy rolled her eyes, "Rhydian, seriously. I'm glad you like the presents, Jana."

"Just a little something," Emma said, passing a small square present to Jana, "Because we've been a bit too harsh on you in the past."

Jana smiled as she opened the box to show a pendant necklace with a little silver crescent moon charm.

"Thank you," Jana said, "And it's ok really, if a wild wolfblood had randomly turned up in the pack's territory it would have been a lot messier than me turning up in your territory."

Emma and Daniel smiled. "Well you're Rhydian's little sister," Daniel began. "So we're family now."

Jana smiled, "Thank you."

"Here," Tom said, passing her another present.

Jana unwrapped it to reveal a large hardback book- 'How to be a Badass at Everything: For Girls.'

"It's like the ultimate guide to everything for girls," Tom explained, "Like a wolfblood human life 101."

"Thanks," Jana replied, "Although I wonder what Meinir would think about makeup advice being considered human life 101."

Tom laughed, "I'll have to tell Aran to buy her one of those for Yule. Just to see the look on her face."

"She'll be angrier than that time Jana made her eat chocolate digestives," Rhydian replied with a smirk.

"When did that happen?" Maddy asked.

"When Rhydian and I had ran away from Jane," Jana explained, "I'd stolen loads of food and told Meinir to try some of it."

"I'm surprised she did," Gerwyn answered, "Aran, yes, maybe, if you pestered him enough. But Meinir- she must have been absolutely starving."

"Oh, yeah I remember," Shannon added, "That Halloween party when we were a playschool- I remember how the teachers noticed that loads of packets of biscuits had gone missing and when they asked everyone if they knew anything, well then Jimi said he'd seen Jana hanging around the food tables."

"Good old Jimi," Rhydian replied.

"I really should have smashed more plates over his head," Jana concluded.

"Well, before everyone goes on a murderous rampage" Xander said, "I think it's time for my present."

He passed Jana a small flat present wrapped in pink paper with little teddy bears on it- something told her Ellie had chosen, or rather ordered him to buy, the wrapping paper. Inside was a small oblong card and when Jana opened it she was shocked. Inside were two tickets for a weekend trip to Rome.

"This is amazing, Xander," Jana exclaimed, "Thank you so much. I love you so much."

Bryn made a retching noise.

Xander hugged Jana, "Love you too."


	40. Chapter 40

"It's not funny, Ellie!" Jana yelled at her friends as she held a metre of rope in one hand and a large torch in the other, "You might have been to half of Europe but I've never been further east than Oslo! I have no idea what's in Italy or what I need to pack, so stop laughing at me."

Ellie tried to hold back a laugh as she looked at a flustered Jana. All around Jana were clothes- ranging from shorts and dresses to what resembled something an arctic expedition might where, and there were piles of other things as well including a first aid kit, a telephone book, and of course a very large bag of fizzy worms.

Gerwyn peered around the door frame to look at the two girls, "Need any help?"

"I didn't think you'd ever been to Italy before?" Jana asked sceptically.

"I haven't," Gerwyn admitted, as he picked up a small box- a look of confusion on his face, "Why do you need an inflatable boat."

"Well haven't you heard?" Jana asked in disbelief, "Rome is sinking!"

Ellie let out a loud laugh, "That's Venice, not Rome."

"And are the hard hats for if the leaning tower of Pisa falls on you?" Gerwyn mocked.

"No, of course not," Jana replied, "It's for if Mount Vesuvius erupts, so that we don't get hit by flying rocks."

"And the rope?" Gerwyn asked, gesturing to the piece of rope to Jana was trying to fit into the suitcase.

"That's for if the leaning tower of pizza falls on us," Jana explained, "To make the rescue effort easier. Although I don't know why Xander wants to visit it, we both aren't that big fans of pizza."

"One, it's Pisa not pizza," Ellie began, a little patronisingly, "Two, it's been standing for the last few centuries, so I doubt it's going to fall over any time soon."

"Also, it's not Siberia," Gerwyn added, holding up a thick jacket, "Where did you get this?"

"Aran brought it over when he visited to take Meinir back to the pack," Jana clarified.

"I never expected Alric to be such a skilled thief," Gerwyn said somewhat in admiration, "Your father can say what he likes about Rhydian and me, but he's definitely not as straight-laced as he likes to make out."

"My father was never straight-laced," Jana began, "He's always been a bit of tyrant."

"A well liked tyrant," Gerwyn replied, "A lot of wolfbloods admired how well he could handle being alpha, even if they did fear him originally. Of course, most people thought he ruled by fear, only those closest to him were able to see that he was actually a reasonable person a lot of the time."

"I guess he treated Rhydian and Xander the way he did because he was trying to maintain the image of being a fearsome alpha," Jana answered.

"No, that's because he's your father," Gerwyn explained, "He was just looking out for his little girl."

"By threatening to kill Rhydian?" Ellie asked sceptically.

"It's not like your brother didn't threaten to kill Bryn if he ever hurt you," Gerwyn answered, "In the human world they deal with these kinds of things differently- there's not so much of an emphasis on family honour, at least not here. In the human world if a guy breaks your sister's or your daughter's heart you'd beat him up, in the wild pack- especially when it's an alpha's daughter- well you wouldn't even try to get on the wrong side of that situation."

"Do you think my father will ever like Xander?" Jana asked with a sigh.

Gerwyn shook his head, "No, but if you're lucky you might get to a point where he'll have a conversation with him. Even if it is mostly expletives."

"What if Xander bought him some really juicy meat?" Ellie inquired.

Gerwyn laughed, "Not even then kiddo. I get the feeling that Alric's just one of those fathers who always hates his daughter's boyfriend, can't stand the idea of his little girl growing up- scares him a little."

"He's scared of me growing up?" Jana asked in disbelief.

Gerwyn nodded, "Of course, he knows that you've got a lot of Arianne in you, that you're fiery and stubborn. He knows he can't tell you what to do anymore, and you're his only child, Jana, he just wants what's best for you."

"Didn't appear like that," Ellie complained.

"Alric's not the best at expressing his emotions," Gerwyn explained.

"He seemed pretty good at expressing them when he tried to kill Rhydian and then attacked him and Maddy," Ellie grumbled, "If you ask me, I'd cut him off, it sounds like all he does is hurt the ones you love and make life difficult for you, Jana. And anyway, he's only going to cause trouble for you and Xander."

"He doesn't just hurt the ones I love," Jana replied, "He forgave Rhydian, and he respects him. He's not an easy man, and he's certainly a traditionalist. But Aran's note proves that my father is still continuing the writing lessons- that he's easing up a little."

"But ultimately you're still going to have to choose between Xander and him," Ellie replied.

"Maybe," Jana replied, "But I'm not cutting him off. He estranged me once before and I thought I'd be ok without my father but I missed him an awful lot. Surely you understand, Ellie? It's not like what my father's done is enough to warrant something like that."

"Don't you dare, Jana!" Ellie exploded, "You got your father back, I never will! You don't understand anything!"

"Calm down, Ellie," Gerwyn said to the young girl.

"You don't think I understand?!" Jana yelled in reply, "I lost my mother too, and my brother. My father walked out of my life too. What John did was awful and wrong, and you and Xander were right to estrange him. But I'm not going to cut my father off just because he can't handle me growing up, that would be a pathetic reason. So before you jump to the conclusion that I have no idea what I'm on about, you might want to realise that I have more in common with you and Xander than you think."

"But everything always works out for you," Ellie argued, "They leave for a while, but then they always come running back, it's not like you really ever truly lose anyone."

"I lost my mother and my brother," Jana replied, "And I know what you think but they're not coming back."

"But you'll always have Rhydian and your adopted family," Ellie replied.

"Yes, I will," Jana answered, "And you're part of the pack too, Ellie. You'll always have us."

"I'm not really in the pack am I?" Ellie asked, "I'm always shielded, so I can't really get involved because everyone thinks I'm too young and just need to be protected. I just want to be a part of something that isn't just going to up and disappear on me."

"Ellie, kiddo," Gerwyn said, "I absolutely promise that I'm not going to disappear, Ceri's got me imprisoned here as her slave and I've appealed to the human rights courts but they ignored my letter, so I'm going to be here forever."

Ellie smiled, her eyes shimmering with unshed tears, "I'm sorry, Jana. I guess I'm just projecting all of the bad things I feel about my father onto your father and… I, now that Bryn,…"

Jana hugged the young girl, "I never knew you loved him so much."

"I never thought I could," Ellie admitted, "He really hated me, and then after a while he'd let me look after Olwenna- I know he was using me but still. I never thought I'd end up caring so much."

"It's hereditary," Gerwyn began, "Xander and you are alike in that way. You both know how to do the whole love at first sight thing. I wish I could have done that… took me three years to ask Ceri… and then I ran off five years later for over a decade… and now. I am clearly the definition of smooth."

Jana laughed, "You know I was always told it was Segolia that made you leave the pack."

"You think I left because of some measly city job?" Gerwyn asked with a raised eyebrow, "Well I did tell you all that didn't I? The truth is, well, I'm not proud to admit it, but I was young- I was only just twenty- I didn't know what I wanted. I didn't understand life or what commitment really meant. There was another woman- a human woman, a friend of Arianne's. I left because I thought I loved her, and I thought she loved me, and I couldn't bear to hurt Ceri by making her suffer. I didn't want to see her face every day knowing that I was probably cheating on her. And what example would it have set Rhydian? That he could just marry a girl and then fool around behind her back. I needed time to go off and clear my head, and Segolia offered that opportunity. Once I'd made up my mind however, well I'd sort of managing to screw everything up completely.

"I never cheated on Ceri, it turned out this other woman and I were never anything more than best friends. But the pack wouldn't let a tame back, and I'd been gone too long- even though I had Alric's blessing in all of it- I knew I had to stay tame. I was a coward."

"No you weren't," Jana reassured her uncle, "You were just trying to do the right thing. Wolfbloods marry young- and what you married Ceri when you were fourteen, fifteen? And you make it sound like it was a choice, but we all know it doesn't really work that way. No one blames you, Uncle Gerwyn, after all, just look at Rhydian and I- just imagine what it would have been like if the marriage had gone ahead."

"It would be like making out with a teddy bear," Ellie replied, "Or incest. It's just no… I can't even imagine you two being all romantic. I know you had a crush on him before, and that's just so disturbing to even think about."

Jana laughed, "I guess I was too young to know what I really wanted."

"You think I'm just going to move on from Bryn," Ellie began, "Because I'm young?"

Jana shook her head, "Not necessarily, but things might change between you. I know I loved Rhydian from the moment I understood what love was, but it was the love a sister has for her brother, and Uncle Gerwyn and Auntie Ceri always loved each other even if they were too proud to admit it. Bryn doesn't have to leave your heart even if he's no longer your boyfriend."

Ellie nodded in understanding.

"Just don't let Xander hurt him too badly," Gerwyn replied.


	41. Chapter 41

Jana felt arms wrap around her and reacted instantly before registering what was really going on. She heard someone cuss loudly as the heel of her boot connected with their kneecap.

"Jeez, Jana!" James exclaimed, "Like seriously, gal, I wasn't trying anything!"

Jana turned around quickly, "Sorry, Jay. Do you know where Xander is? The show was awesome."

James bowed exaggeratedly, "Should be backstage with Tristan. I'll go tell him his groupies arrived."

Jana smiled, "Thank you."

She watched as James walked away laughing. James and Tristan were Xander best friends and together they formed the band, Jurassic Havoc. James was the eldest out of all of them, and with his golden hair and turquoise eyes looked a little like Rhydian, however he was far more of a womaniser than Rhydian had ever been. As for Tristan, he was quiet and not particularly attractive, although he was always kind to Jana and found her love of fizzy worms adorable.

Xander appeared from around the door.

"That was amazing!" Jana exclaimed, "I love the way you just…"

Jana did her best air guitar impression making what she believed to be guitar noises, but sounded more like an asphyxiated cat struggling for breath.

Xander laughed, "I'm glad you enjoyed the show. And I'm happy someone finally put James in his place."

Jana grinned, "It was a small misunderstanding, he was trying to surprise hug me so I accidentally gave him a dead leg."

Xander smiled, reaching out to brush a stray curl away from Jana's face, "Just a note for next time, if James mentions about groupies, absolutely deny any involvement with them."

Jana raised a questioning eyebrow.

"Groupies are groups of girls," Xander began slowly, "Well they follow bands around, boy bands, with the hope of… well, you know."

"But surely boy bands have plenty of admirers," Jana replied in confusion, "And the guys probably have their own girlfriends."

"I didn't mean long term involvement," Xander replied, feeling instant embarrassment, "I meant something… you know… less committed."

"Oh," Jana said with sudden realisation, "Oh, Gods. I can't believe James would play with my ignorance like that."

"I think he deserves another dead leg and some time," Xander suggested.

Jana smiled. She recalled the first time she had met the band- James, Tristan and his girlfriend Delilah. Xander had told them that Jana was a traveller and had been home educated until she was fourteen, which was why she wasn't up to date on all the lingo and didn't always know what they were on about. They had all seemed understanding, but James seemed to be rather mischievous and took advantage of the gaps in Jana's knowledge.

"Well, are you all ready?" Xander asked, pointing to his own suitcase.

Jana nodded exuberantly, "Gerwyn's driving us to airport and Cadwr insisted on going with him. They're complaining that it took them too long to put my bags in the car- I only had three bags!"

Xander smiled, "For a three day break?"

"Well two of them are quite small," Jana argued.

Xander laughed, "Did Ellie help you with packing?"

Jana nodded.

"Well that explains it then," Xander answered.

"I wonder what Rome is like," Jana pondered, "They do serve foods other than pasta and pizza, don't they?"

"Of course," Xander replied with a grin, "It's the birth place of ice cream and they have a special kind of ham called prosciutto. Oh and I'll have to get you to try tiramisu."

"Tirama-what?" Jana asked.

"It's coffee with sponge and cream and some other ingredients," Xander explained.

"Why am I not surprised?" Jana asked, hands on hips.

"You know me too well," Xander replied, "Now come on, before Gerwyn thinks up too many bad jokes for the journey."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

Cadwr let out a loud yawn.

"It's past your bedtime, little guy," Gerwyn said to him, "I can't believe Ceri let you go with me."

"I want to see the airport," Cadwr protested, "I bet it's amazing."

"It's the same one that Maddy and Rhydian arrived at," Jana said to him.

"The one that sells hotdogs?" Cadwr asked excitedly.

"I swear we spend more money on food than anything else," Gerwyn replied,

"I thought that would be expected in a wolfblood household," Xander added.

"It is," Gerwyn replied, "But I never thought a little cub could get so hungry."

"Can we get a hotdog when we get there?" Cadwr asked, "Please."

"It'll probably be closed," Gerwyn answered, "We'll get some Kentucky fried rat instead."

Cadwr screwed up his face adorably in disgust.

"They actually debunked that," Xander replied.

"It still looked like a rat to me," Gerwyn answered, "Ah, here we are madam and monsieur."

"Thank you," Jana replied, "But you do know that's French right?"

"Go on," Gerwyn answered, "You don't want to miss your flight."

Jana and Xander climbed out of the car as Xander helped grab her bags out of the trunk.

"Jana, you and I have differing definitions of small," Xander said shaking his head in disbelief.

"Well that one is small," Jana argued pointing to the smallest bag.

"Ok that one could technically be classed as small but-," Xander began, before Jana kissed him hard on the lips.

"Oh, shut up," Jana said playfully, "We're going to Rome!"

"Need any help?" Gerwyn asked as he walked around to the back of the car, "Now Jana, I've just got some uncley advice for you before you set off, Don't have sex, because you will get pregnant and die! Don't have sex in the missionary position, don't have sex standing up, just don't do it, OK, promise?"

Jana looked horrified, "Please tell me you did not just say that."

"Have fun kids!" Gerwyn said, as he and Cadwr waved goodbye, and he tooted the horn loudly.

Xander laughed loudly, "I don't know how Ceri puts up with him."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

Xander smiled as Jana dozed, her head resting against his shoulder. Outside it was pitch black, small specks of stars dotted across the night sky and a large half-moon glowing, casting light on the ornate buildings. The taxi travelled across the smooth road slowly approaching their hotel.

Xander nudged Jana, hoping that she would wake up but knowing she probably wouldn't. He gazed up at the hotel. It was three storeys tall and although it was a simple Novotel on the outskirts of the city it was beautiful with little pots of flowers of all colours which swayed in the cool breeze.

Xander thanked the driver and passed him the money.

"Are we there yet?" Jana mumbled and then yawned loudly.

Xander smiled, "Just arrived."

"Awesome," Jana replied, slowly climbing out of the car, her soft toy wolf tucked under her arm.

Xander pulled the suitcases out of the trunk, carefully placing them on the ground.

"This is so brilliant," Jana said, kissing Xander on the cheek, "We're in Rome!"


	42. Chapter 42

"I thought it was actually made of pizza!" Jana exclaimed, in part-surprise part-sadness, as she stared out of the window of the coach.

Xander laughed, and put an arm around Jana's shoulders, "It still looks amazing though, doesn't it?"

"Yeah," Jana agreed, "Almost as good as the amphitheatre- you know, where all the gladiators used to beat each other up?"

"The colosseum," Xander corrected her gently, "Yeah, it was pretty epic but I can't believe people used to live like that. Fights to the death, fighting wild animals- whilst all the rich emperors and patrons looked on. It's actually quite sickening to think that people could treat other people like that."

"It kind of reminds me of the wild pack," Jana whispered, so the other passenger couldn't overhear, "You know how fighting is taken so seriously and one member of the pack would train a younger member and the cubs would fight each other. I wonder if wolfbloods ever fought in colosseums- I wouldn't be surprised if they did."

"Probably, after meeting Meinir and your father I wouldn't be surprised," Xander replied.

"You know my father called," Jana said, "Aran and Bryn taught him how to. He wasn't pleased about the whole wedding thing. He's cut me off, again."

Xander shook his head in disgust, "We've been together almost a year now, Jana. And I know for a fact that wildies move at a much much faster rate in relationships than most tame or human couples do. I don't know what he expects really or what he's trying to achieve by it. If it's what you really want then he should support you."

"This is definitely what I want," Jana said, cheekily kissing Xander on the lips, before letting out a little giggle, "And my father can go to hell."

Xander smiled, "Please tell me you didn't raid the mini fridge in our hotel again."

"Of course not," Jana denied, trying to make herself look as innocent as possible.

"Whatever we do we've got to make sure Rhydian doesn't find out," Xander said, "He won't be happy if his sisters drunk."

"I'm not drunk," Jana announced exuberantly, "I'm only a little bit plastered."

Xander rolled his eyes, "I should have never let you try that beer."

"But it tasted so good," Jana said, nodding again and again.

"Look, drink this," Xander said passing her a bottle of water, "We'll get some food when we arrive."

"Please not the spaghetti again," Jana begged, "The look the waiter gave me when I asked for no chillies. It was so awkward."

Xander let out a snigger, "That's because Spaghetti Bolognese doesn't usually contain chillies. It's just your uncle's cooking- he adds chilli to everything."

Jana shrugged, "I'm used to it now. You know I really want motzerella. Do you think that palm tree over there wants some motzerella?"

"It's mozzarella," Xander said, "And you hate it, remember, it's what makes pizza taste melted. And no the palm tree isn't hungry."

"Is he thirsty then?" Jana asked, "Or is it a she palm tree. Or maybe its both, or neither. I don't know. Why are palm trees so complicated? Uh oh, I don't feel so good."

Xander passed Jana a carrier bag, which she abruptly threw up it repeatedly. He hoped that maybe she would sober up a little, he was worried about her and had no idea how much she had drunk.

"Thanks," she said, when she had finished, "You know I love you, don't you?"

"Of course," Xander said, rubbing Jana's back comfortably, "I love you too."

"Did I tell you that the palm tree is going to be best man at our wedding?" Jana asked in a serious tone.

"No, and I'm sure Rhydian will be delighted to know he's been replaced by a potted plant," Xander replied.

"Really?" Jana asked, "Cool! I was so worried! Can you tell him for me?"

"Sure thing," Xander answered.

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

Jana rested her head against the cool glass table and groaned, "I can't believe I did that. My head hurts so badly now."

"I can't believe you got drunk off of two cans of beer," Xander replied. He remembered walking into the hotel room earlier that evening and emptying the alcohol out of the mini-fridge and putting it in the top cupboard, far out of Jana's reach. He was amused when he found two empty cans of beers placed in the fridge- made to appear like they were unopened.

"Don't remind me," Jana said, "How bad was I?"

"Well," Xander began, "You told me you were making a palm tree our best man, and then you debated the gender fluidity of palm trees. Oh and after that, you burst out crying because you thought the tower was going full on top of us and 'squish' us. I think you fell asleep after that."

"I wish I could disappear," Jana announced.

"Hey, you weren't as bad as James," Xander replied, "At least you didn't pretend to be a window cleaner and wake up an elderly lady at three in the morning, jump on benches screaming I'm the King of the world, and then get in a fight with a post box, which results in you being taken to A and E with a broken hand."

"Yes, but I bet James doesn't remember any of that," Jana began, "I can remember the trip there and seeing the tower and some of the tour but some of it is a little blurry."

"You'll be better soon," Xander said, reaching across the table to hold her hand, "Have you tried taking an aspirin?"

"Can't take them," Jana replied.

"Why? I thought wolfbloods could take them," Xander asked, "And you're over sixteen now, it should be safe."

"I'd rather not risk it," Jana answered, "Anyway isn't there a food cure for a hang over?"

"Unfortunately they don't sell kebabs and curries in a traditional Mediterranean restaurant," Xander answered, "However, considering they are both high fat and high salt, well you could always see if spaghetti carbonara helps."

"It doesn't have chilli in it does it?" Jana asked miserably.

"No," Xander said with a smile, squeezing her hand, "But you need to eat something. And hey they even have tiramisu for dessert, and gelato of course."

"Gelato?" Jana asked in confusion, "Isn't that the stuff they put in cheap pork pies?"

"No, that's gelatin," Xander explained, "Gelato is ice cream."

"Oh, that does make more sense," Jana said, "I was wondering why the ice cream parlours also sold pork pies."

Xander smiled, "Well try the spaghetti carbonara. I'm sure you'll like it."

At that moment the waitress came over and took their orders before walking back to the kitchen.

"I'm glad we sat in the shade," Jana said, as she looked up at the flowers that hung from the beige canopy above- bright fuchsia and violet.

"You'll feel better soon," Xander reassured her, "Although, no offence, but after last night I thought you might have known that you couldn't handle two cans of beers. I mean, you were quite tipsy last night."

Jana groaned, "I know, I should have known better. But I just wanted to stop being a little kid. I wanted to be able to do all of things that other people my age can do, like drinking a fair bit without getting drunk. I'm sorry about last night- especially the whole blurred lines thing."

"It was actually quite funny," Xander admitted.

"Xander!" Jana exclaimed, before wincing at the loudness of her voice.

"Look, we still have tonight and tomorrow before we go home," Xander said, "We're exploring the museums tomorrow and then going to the beach at Santa Marinella."

"Sounds cool," Jana admitted, "I really wish I hadn't made such a fool of myself last night."

"It wasn't really a big deal, Jana," Xander reassured her, "Honestly. Most girls who get drunk are a lot worse than that- I should know, Jay dragged me to Magaluf with him for a lad's holiday when we were eighteen."

"But the thing is," Jana began nervously, "Well I. Last night, I completely sent the wrong message."

"Jana, you were drunk," Xander replied, "There was no way either of us was going to do anything like, you know. I wouldn't take advantage of you like that, and even if you'd said you were ok about it I still would have said no."

"See that's what I meant," Jana said, "I was trying to tell you but then the alcohol got in the way."

"Jana?" Xander asked, "Are you sure? Absolutely sure?"

Jana nodded, "I'm pretty sure I am."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

Jana sat on the bed fully awake and completely sober as she waited for Xander to finish in the bathroom. She picked nervously at her pyjama shorts. She didn't know how she would react, how Xander would react. If she was ready or not. Maybe she should have waited until she got home, she thought, then she could talk to Maddy about it.

Jana knew what she wanted, she wanted to be close with Xander like she was before. She just didn't know how anyone in her situation was supposed to know if they were ready or not and what the fallout would be if she wasn't.

Xander opened the bathroom door and smiled at Jana before strolling over to the bed.

"Are you ok?" Xander asked, "Are you still sure that you want this?"

Jana nodded, "Yeah."

"If at any time it gets too much, then just tell me," Xander said, "Promise?"

Jana nodded, "Promise."

Xander sat down next to her on the bed and put an arm around her waist, so that Jana's head rested against his shoulder. That wasn't anything new for them, Xander often woke up to find that Jana was using him as a pillow.

Jana nodded to him and Xander understood what she meant. She began to slowly unbutton her shirt, her hands trembling. Xander cupped his hands around hers, his eyes filled with concern.

"I'm ok," Jana said, in as steady a tone as she could manage, "I swear."

"Jana," Xander replied sternly, "Please don't just pretend. Don't just try to act strong about this. This is something you need to be totally honest about. You don't have to put on a brave face anymore, especially not around me."

Jana felt tears well in her eyes, "I know what I want but what happens if I change my mind? What happens to me then?"

Xander hugged Jana, stroking her curly hair, as she cried.

"Will I ever be back to normal?" Jana asked, "Will I ever be just me again?"

"Of course," Xander reassured her, "And you pretty much are back to normal- that's what the counsellor pretty much said to you. And you've always been you, Jana- your still as strong, and as brave, and beautiful and loving, if not more than you were before."

"Strong enough to handle this?" Jana asked.

"Jana," Xander began, "I'm not going to tell you what to do and I know that's hard but I don't want you to feel coerced or pressurised. But I believe you do know what you want, and if you decide to change your mind then that's ok."

Jana took a deep breath, "Nothing ventured, nothing gained. I guess."

"Jana, are you sure?" Xander asked.

Jana nodded assertively and smiled, before reaching with steady hands to unbutton her shirt, "Yes, I am."


	43. Chapter 43

**One year later**

"Jana?" Rhydian began in a confused and slightly shocked tone, "One, why are you standing outside the door holding a sign 'Do not enter on pain of death- especially you Rhydian!' and two, why is Adrian wearing a tuxedo?"

"Ya-ya," the young cub said as he toddled towards his father. Rhydian picked up Adrian carefully and the infant grinned at his aunt mischievously.

Jana sighed but didn't move an inch from where she stood in front of the door, "The first one should be obvious. Even wild wolfbloods have that wedding tradition. And as for the tuxedo, you have to admit he looks very cute in it. Rhydian, you're only going to get married once you should make a big deal of it."

"Ok, ok," Rhydian said in a defeated tone, "Just tell me you didn't dress up Cass. You know how much she hates dressing up."

"I know," Jana replied, "And don't worry, Maddy's mum and dad insisted on being in charge of looking after Cass. Though I honestly can't believe that Cass hates dressing up."

"Some wolfblood girls are like that," Rhydian said, "You used to hate makeup and perfumes. Well before you became the fourth K."

"K, K, K, K, K," Adrian started chanting.

"Rhydian, I was hardly the fourth K," Jana replied, "And besides you're a fine one to talk- no wonder Adrian likes his tux so much considering how long it takes you to get ready in the morning."

"Well at least it doesn't take a millennia to brush my hair," Rhydian retorted.

"K, K, K, K, K, K," Adrian continued.

"Adrian," Rhydian said, "Stop that."

"Adrian," Jana replied, "If you're quiet I'll get you a packet of fizzy worms."

The cub's face lit up and he clapped his hands together in joy, "Ya-ya!"

Rhydian shook his head, "We already owe him a chocolate cake, Woody toy and a pirate's pencil case."

"Don't worry," Jana reassured her brother, "He'll never remember."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

"I remember my wedding," Gerwyn began, sitting at the kitchen table as Rhydian tried to feed Adrian.

"You do?" Ceri asked, an eyebrow raised.

"Yes, I do actually," Gerwyn replied, "I wasn't that smashed. Especially at our wild wolfblood wedding, you know how much Alric's father was against human alcohol."

"I remember you drinking plenty of the pack-brewed alcohol," Ceri replied.

"It was compulsory," Gerwyn argued in as convincing a voice as he could manage.

"Compulsory or not I would never touch that stuff," Rhydian said, screwing up his nose in disgust, before turning back to Adrian, "Come on just one more spoon of- I have absolutely no idea what this stuff is- and then I'll get you your fizzy worms."

Adrian turned away from the spoon which had some bright red puree on it.

"I honestly can't blame you," Rhydian said, dropping the spoon in to the half full bowl in defeat.

Ceri picked up the empty jar of baby food and sniffed it cautiously, "Is that supposed to be tomato?"

"Yes, tomato and onion pasta," Rhydian said.

"Where's the pasta?" Ceri asked, eyeing the bowl.

"Where's the food?" Gerwyn asked.

"We don't usually give the cubs this," Rhydian argued defensively, "It's only because of the wedding."

Gerwyn got up and began to rummage in the cupboard, muttering something about Jana and 'hiding them well'. He eventually managed to find a packet of fizzy worms and held them in front of Adrian. The disgruntled cub tried to grab for the packet and a chubby fist wrapped around one corner of it, refusing to let go.

"Ya-ya!" Adrian yelled loudly.

"No," Gerwyn said the cub, "Don't tell your aunt or your Mummy or they'll kill me, and you wouldn't want that to happen to Grandpa, would you now?"

"Ya-ya!" Adrian repeated, holding on to the packet even more tightly.

"I swear he's going to be the death of me," Gerwyn said shaking his head.

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

"I wish I had hair like yours," Ellie said to Maddy as she arranged a set of elaborate hair clips on Maddy's dressing table.

"Really?" Maddy asked sceptically.

"Of course," Ellie replied, "It takes me ages to straighten my hair in the mornings and you don't even have to worry about it."

"I know," Jana said, popping her around the door, "You are so lucky."

"Aw, thanks you two," Maddy said, before picking up her phone, "Shannon said she'd be here in five."

"Already here," Shannon announced as she ran up the stairs, "What can I help with?"

"We're just deciding on hair styles," Maddy said, "I only want something simple. Ellie helped me pick out three styles a few days ago but I'm still not sure what to go with."

"I thought the first one looked great," Ellie announced.

"Yeah, it really did," Maddy replied, "We'll go with that one then."

"So," Jana said in a long drawn out way, "You and Tom then, Shan? When did that all happen?"

"Jana!" Shannon exclaimed, before sighing, "I was going to wait until after the wedding to tell everyone."

"Tell everyone what?" Maddy asked, "Come on, Shan. You're making me jittery."

"Well you know how Tom and I have been together for about a year now," Shannon began, "And that we have known each since we were two. Well he asked me to marry him last weekend, and of course I said yes."

"Shannon, that's amazing!" Maddy exclaimed.

"Jana found out because she saw me wearing my ring at the Kafe," Shannon added, "Can't keep anything from a wildy."

"So are you going to marry before or after Jana and Xander?" Ellie asked.

"Depends on when Xander and Jana plan on getting married," Shannon replied, "At the moment they keep on saying in a few months' time."

"We're just not in any rush," Jana said, "We're happy as we are. We already consider ourselves married."

Ellie made a retching noise, "I have no idea how I put up with you two."

Jana laughed. Ellie had moved in with them after she'd finished her last year of school. Whilst social services had suggested she stay with Jane, and Ellie and Jane had managed to get along well enough, Ellie had decided to move in with them. It seemed almost overnight that the flat was transformed from its simple design into a replica IKEA store- with countless items of furniture and household appliances that Jana had never encountered before in her life. Ellie had almost finished her first year at college and her first set of exams was out of the way, she just had to sort out some second year stuff and of course, get organised for the end of year dance.

"At least Bryn is coming to the summer dance with me," Ellie said, "Imagine him wearing a tux, he'd look so handsome."

Jana rolled her eyes, and spotted Maddy rolling her eyes too. Bryn and Ellie had gotten back together almost a month after Bryn had left for the wild pack. It seemed that Bryn actually did genuinely care about her, and much to the annoyance of the pack he had invited Ellie to stay with them during her holidays. Ellie loved the wild pack and already considered Gwyn and Aran to be family.

"Do you want me to supply the anaesthetic so that you knock him out and then dress him up?" Shannon asked, "Because I doubt Bryn will wear a tux out of choice."

"No," Ellie replied, "But can you supply the anaesthetic to help me get him out of the tux?"

"Ellie!" Jana shouted.

"What?" Ellie answered, "I've seen Bryn shirtless before, I don't know why you're so shocked."

"I don't really want to be seeing you on an episode of Teen Mom," Maddy said.

"Oh, don't worry Maddy," Ellie reassured her friend, "I need to sort out the colour scheme and furniture layout for the nursery long before I even consider having kids."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

Emma, Daniel, Gerwyn and Ceri stood looking around at the church. The church in Stoneybridge was only small but it was sufficiently big enough for all of them and their family members.

"We'll be related in an hour's time," Gerwyn announced.

"We're already related," Ceri corrected him, "Through the cubs. How are they doing? We only get to see the every few months, we were surprised to see Adrian already walking around so confidently."

Daniel smiled, "We would have preferred Cass to start walking first. She's the most sensible one of the two. Now Adrian is just trying to eat everything and can't be left alone for a second."

"And have you seen that mischievous grin he always has?" Emma added, "He could melt a heart of stone but he can still be an absolute nightmare."

Ceri smiled, "Rhydian was the same way when he was a little cub."

"As was Maddy," Daniel said, "Do you remember when she was three, that trip to Dorset? When she and her cousin decided to play mermaids? Even though we told her not to go in the water without an adult present."

Emma nodded, "Adrian and Cass won't be as bad."

"I don't think they could be," Gerwyn replied.

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

"You may kiss the bride," the vicar announced as Rhydian leaned in to kiss Maddy.

They were aware of someone- probably Gerwyn- clearing his throat noisily, but they didn't care. They didn't know how long they'd spent kissing but it was their big day and they weren't worried about what anyone else might think.

"Have they stopped yet?" Cadwr asked, his eyes peering out from behind his hand.

"Look Adrian," Jana said as she held up the young cub, "Don't Mummy and Daddy look so happy?"

Adrian grinned merrily and Jana swore that Adrian understood exactly what she'd said. She looked around at her friends and family. Emma and Ceri were fighting to hold back tears of joy, Gerwyn looked amused as if he was thinking of something amusing to say in his speech later on, Dan, Shannon and Tom looked happy too. Cadwr seemed grossed out by everything and Bryn looked like he was trying to get some space between him and Ellie. Aran and Alric looked around the church in a mixture of confusion and interest and Meinir seemed to alternate between being deep in thought and looking bored.

Jana spotted two young boys standing near the back of the church- one was roughly Xander's age and the other closer to Bryn's age. She had no idea who they were but apparently they had helped out Rhydian a while ago and her father seemed to know them too.

"It'll be us next," Xander said to Jana, "I promise."

"Make sure you keep that promise," Jana replied.

Everyone started clapping as Maddy and Rhydian turned to face the crowd, before walking towards their family.

"Oh, Bryn, darling," Ellie said, "Confetti's not edible."

Bryn blushed bright red, "What are you supposed to do with it then?"

"This," Meinir said, before grabbing a handful of the pink, silver and gold sparkly paper, "To the newlyweds!"

She threw the confetti at Maddy and Rhydian and then everyone began to join in.

"This must be the first time Meinir's been able to throw things at people without getting in trouble for it," Jana said.

"It's like a blizzard," Cadwr said happily as he pulled pieces of silver paper out of his hair.

"Knew you would say something like that," a familiar voice replied.

Cadwr turned around his mouth dropping open in surprise.

"I hope you've missed me," Gwyn said, before hugging her brother, "I missed you."

"Gwyn," Cadwr replied, "I love you so much, sis."

"I hope Cass and Adrian will be like that when they're older," Maddy added to Jana, "How was he?"

"Slept during the vows," Jana admitted, "But woke up just as you two started kissing. Congratulations!"

"Thank you, sis," Rhydian said, beaming, "I hope you and Xander are getting married next. Though I'm not sure if it'll be babies first and then marriage or the other way round."

"Marriage first," Xander replied, "Jana would kill me if she had babies before twenty-five. Congratulations, I know you two will have a great life together."

"Thanks Xander," Rhydian said.

"Rhyd," Gerwyn began, "Who are the boys at the back? I've never seen them before."

"Steven and Gregor," Rhydian began, "They helped me after the whole Kincaid incident. We've been emailing ever since. I thought it would nice for them to get to meet everyone."

"Yeah," Jana agreed, "Although I think Meinir already knows Gregor, or at least she's acting like she knows him quite well."

"Yeesh," Cadwr added.

"My thoughts exactly," Jana replied.

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

"What on earth is he doing?" Bryn asked in horror as he looked up at the stage.

"DJ Jeffers in the house," Rhydian said humorously, "Prepare to not hear a single song released after the eighties."

"He still has a better taste in music than Xander," Ellie announced as rested her head on Bryn's shoulder, "Xander listens to really old music, the kind of stuff they produce before CD players were invented."

"LP's and vinyl's," Xander explained, "And Led Zeppelin, T-rex and Bob Dylan are much better than electronic auto-tuned rubbish that you hear everywhere."

"I wonder where Jana is," Maddy pondered, "She's spent an awful long time in the bathroom."

"I bet it's the cake," Bryn said, "I bet she's bringing whatever's left of the cake."

"I hope the cake is nice," Ellie said, "And vegetarian. There's more meat here than at a Dothraki wedding."

Bryn looked at his girlfriend in confusion, "Dothraki? Are they the horse guys?"

Ellie nodded, "And you will always be my Azor Ahai."

"Do I want to know?" Rhydian asked.

"Trust me, you really don't want to know," Xander replied.

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

The music cut out suddenly in the middle of the song as Jana walked onto the stage and tapped gently on the microphone to check it was still working.

"Erm, so, it's time for the newlyweds' dance, so if you could clear the dancefloor please."

Everyone moved out of the way as Maddy and Rhydian moved towards the dancefloor and waiting for the music to start.

Jana fumbled with the CD player but eventually got it to work, the music blared out- soft delicate classical music- Moonlight by Yiruma.

Everyone watched as Rhydian and Maddy began to dance.

The song reminded Maddy of the first time she had transformed, with the bright full moon shining over the sea and Rhydian's hand in hers. Now she knew that she would be forever with the man she loved and that she would never leave him, and she knew that he felt exactly the same way.

And everything was perfect.


	44. Chapter 44

**A few months later…**

"Is that a dress or a badly made soufflé?" Rhydian teased.

"Rhydian!" Jana yelled, hitting her brother, "I am stressed enough as it is. I swear if you're going to make one more remark like that I'll stab you with a hairpin!"

"Jana," Meinir began, "You do realise that your wedding is supposed to be the happiest day of your life?"

Jana sighed. She really didn't need this right now. Between Rhydian's light hearted jokes and Meinir's not-at-all-light hearted comments Jana was beginning to feel extremely nervous.

"Shut up, May!" Jana snapped at her, "Don't forget that the only reason why you're here is because you're Gregor's plus one."

"What on earth is a plus one?" Aran asked as he walked up the stairs.

"I don't know," Cadwr pondered, as he watched Jana, "I think it's something I'm not supposed to know about."

"It's nothing like that at all," Meinir replied, "It's just a friend thing."

"Yeah, right," Aran said in a disbelieving tone, "A very friendly friend."

Meinir hit her brother, and replied in a flustered tone, "At least I have someone like Gregor in my life."

Meinir stomped down the stairs, as Aran tried not to laugh.

"What just happened?" Ellie asked as she came out of one of the bedrooms, "Oh, Aran, you look so handsome!"

Aran smiled awkwardly. It didn't matter how many times he said it, he thought to himself, Ellie was never going to appreciate fully that he only hunted for the other pack.

"Thank you," Aran said quietly, "I should probably go and check that Meinir is not killing anything."

"You do realise you are not his type right?" Gwyn asked the young girl.

"I think Aran is just confused," Ellie replied.

"Well unless he wants to have a menage a trois," Jana began, "I think he's not going to interested for quite a while."

"What's a menage a trois?" Cadwr asked, in confusion.

"Something you really don't need to know about," Gwyn replied.

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

Maddy sat with the cubs watching TV. They were both engrossed in the programme, holding little bowls of raisins and apples, when Rhydian came walking down the stairs.

"Don't you think that's going to confuse them?" Rhydian asked his wife.

"It's just a kid's programme," Maddy argued, "They're not going to make the connection."

"Just as well," Rhydian replied, "Where are Pepper and her family going today, kiddies. Oh yes, they're going to a hog roast. Oink, eek."

"Well it was this or Thomas the Tank engine," Maddy argued, "And you know I don't like that show."

Rhydian laughed. He recalled the story Maddy had told him a few months ago. Much in the same way wild wolfblood cubs accidentally over personified trees and clouds, it seemed that tames over personified human objects. He laughed at the idea of a two year old Maddy being afraid of a train coming to life and having a conversation with her.

"At least they're eating their fruit," Maddy said, before turning to the cubs, "See whenever Daddy's busy, you always behave well and eat your food. But Daddy's always very naughty isn't he?"

Rhydian watched as Adrian grinned, and he swore he saw the young cub nod slightly.

"Do you think they'll make it through the day?" Rhydian asked.

"I'll put them down for a nap around three-ish," Maddy explained, "It's good that Jana and Xander have decided to hold the reception here."

"It's not like Jana would have wanted to spend the whole of her wedding day inside," Rhydian explained, "It was hard enough convincing her to have her wedding ceremony at the community centre."

Rhydian remembered that argument with Jana well. Jana had planned to invite both her wolfblood and human friends, so had agreed to take out anything too wolfy from the ceremony, but the idea of having an indoor wedding was too far for her. It wasn't until Rhydian told her that there was no way they could fit everyone in their back garden and no way they could hold both the ceremony and the reception there that she backed down.

"At least she didn't decide to celebrate it in the woods," Maddy added, "Imagine trying to get the buggy over tree roots. It seems Jana has really taken the cubs into consideration when planning all of this."

"Probably because she wants a world's best aunt T-shirt every Christmas," Rhydian replied.

"Yeah, but she even called the babysitter for us on her 18th birthday," Maddy said, "She just seems so much more aware, you know, of the little things that go into raising children. You don't think she's, do you?"

"I think we'd know already," Rhydian began, "We'd be able to tell."

Maddy smiled, "Yeah, I guess so. I should probably go and get ready. Make sure the cubs eat their snack and don't give them any chocolate, I've promised them they can have some wedding cake later on."

Rhydian sat down on the sofa and grabbed the remote, flicking through the channels. He noticed an episode of Top Gear was playing, and would have ordinarily watched it, but of course the cubs wouldn't enjoy that and Maddy would bury him alive if he showed them something like that.

"Pepper," Cassidy said, looking at her father insistently, "Pepper, Daddy!"

"Ok, ok," Rhydian said, quickly changing the channel back to Pepper Pig.

"Mam?" Adrian asked, with a concerned expression.

"Mummy will be back soon," Rhydian said, "Let's watch some talking dinner shall we?"

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

Xander stood nervously next to the trestle table that was serving as a makeshift altar. He himself wasn't at all religious, and had always imagine having his wedding in some alternative place just like this. He knew Jana was sort of religious, a sort of wolfblood Norse paganism, but she wasn't very hard line about it- although according to Rhydian she'd been obsessed with tradition when she first came to the human world.

At least he wasn't going to have to speak Welsh, Xander thought in relief. Jana had hoped at first that he might be able to say some of the vows in Welsh, and he had tried but how did Meinir put it?- his Welsh sounded like a cat being run over on a motorway mixed in with the dying groans of an elderly wildy who had just been abandoned by his pack. Well, he thought humorously, that might be the first and probably last time he ever agreed with Meinir on anything.

"This is abnormal," Steven complained, "The ceremony should be outdoors, with the sun above and the woodland below us, and the gods present to bear witness."

"I'm sure the gods can see through walls," Gregor reassured his brother, "Remember this is Jana's big day so we should be happy for her and not complaining all the time."

Steven sulked, he didn't really want to be here and had spent the past week teasing Gregor about his crush on Jana a few years ago. It was just his luck- Gregor had moved on to someone else, and worst of all it was a human girl!

Xander smooth out a crease in the sleeve of his grey jacket and looked at the small flower he had attached to his collar. Jana had wanted Edelweiss flowers (after watching Sound of Music) but he'd had to explain to that it wasn't possible so they'd gone for Calla lilies instead.

"You don't need to be nervous," Tom reassured him, "Everything is going to plan. Maddy just called to let us know they'll be here in ten. Cassidy was sick before leaving the house, not in the car- and you blame Rhydian, Maddy told him not to give the cubs chocolate. Ceri said Gerwyn will be arriving with them, because he can't be trusted to not run through the woods and turn up an hour late. Jay has written the most embarrassing best man speech in the world. And course, your sister tried to upstage the bride before Ceri told her there was no way she was going dressed in something like that. So yeah, everything's completely normal."

"I don't think you can put normal and wolfblood wedding in the same sentence," Xander replied, "Then again the only weddings I've ever seen are the Red wedding and the Purple wedding, so maybe I shouldn't be worried so much. Unless it's a wolfblood tradition that at least one person must die during a wedding."

Tom laughed, "I don't think that would happen. I'm sure you'll be fine, as long as there's a lot of meat and a massive cake."

"Well everything should go well then," Xander replied.

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK 

Gerwyn smiled to himself as he gazed around the hall, surprised at how many people had turned up-there had to be close to two hundred people. Some he recognised from his old pack- there was Fat Bob with his dark hair in long braid, the Old Codger who had to be at least a hundred by now, the Suck-ups (Meinir's old gang members), and a few other members who he didn't really know all that well. There had to be around forty wild wolfbloods there- all members of Jana's old pack. Of course, Alric had refused to attend- he thought the whole thing was sacrilegious. Gerwyn didn't mind Alric not turning up, it was selfish but he felt that he could do a far better job of playing Daddy than Alric would have ever done.

"Just please don't say or do anything really embarrassing," Jana said to him as she stood outside the hall.

"So I can say or do something moderately embarrassing?" Gerwyn asked, "You do realise that you asked me to make a speech."

"Well, save all the embarrassing stuff for the reception," Jana replied, "Please."

"Of course, kiddo," Gerwyn replied, "I will be the definition of sophistication."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

Jana walked through the open doors of the church, aware that her heart was pounding but she was extremely happy. She could hear the sound of piano music- Amas Veritas, the song she and Xander had chosen for their special day.

She saw Gerwyn standing to her right and smiled to him. He smiled back at her proudly and Jana could swear that Gerwyn was crying slightly but trying to hide it. He took her arm and carefully they walked down the aisle.

Jana was glad that she had chosen a dress with a train, it was bad enough having to wear high heels- even if they were only five inches. She knew her dress was beautiful- a long flowing white with silver glitter and ruffled skirts. Her hair was still wildly curly but had been tamed with plenty of hair mousse and hair spray and look elegant. The only jewellery she wore was a necklace Xander had bought her whilst they were in Italy.

She could see Xander standing near the altar, his hair slightly ruffled but in a stylish way. He wore a plain black suit and had a small lily pinned to the front of it. He took her hand in his and leaned in to kiss her but the minister of oaths cleared his throat and Xander realised he'd been a little too eager.

Jana smiled at Xander and he smiled back, both of them communicating their happiness in unspoken words.

"This monster is yours now," Gerwyn whispered to Xander before standing to the side.

Jana looked at Gerwyn incredulously, but he just shrugged.

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

"Gosh, they'll be ripping each other's clothes off next," Meinir complained to Aran.

"Just remember there'll be food soon," Aran replied, "And that I'll never get married, so that's one less episode of sentimentality for you to have to stomach."

"Why are you never getting married?" Cadwr asked Aran.

"All the girls in the pack are too ugly," Bryn argued.

"Hey!" Gwyn yelled at him, before punching.

"Sorry, all the eligible girls in the pack are too ugly or too young," Bryn clarified.

"But I thought Aran liked rabbits," Cadwr said in confusion.

"Well when they say rabbits," Bryn said, "Look I'll explain to you when you're older."

"It's been five seconds," Cadwr said, after counting each one, "I'm older now."

Bryn rolled his eyes, "I've got to go and find Ellie."

"Oooh!" Gwyn and Cadwr said before making smooching noises.

"You don't think he actually likes her?" Meinir asked, "Do you, Aran?"

"I think they really are in love," Aran began, "But I honestly don't know how long it will last."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

"Adrian, no!" Maddy said to her youngest cub, "No you can't! No, leave the decorations alone. No, don't eat them!"

Emma picked up the little cub as he began to grizzle.

"I have no idea how he's already so fast," Maddy said as she placed Cassidy on her hip.

Emma smiled, "Gerwyn said Rhydian was the second fastest in the wild pack when he was just three."

"Who was the fastest?" Maddy asked.

"Jana's mother," Emma replied, "Arianne."

"Her mother should be here," Maddy said, "As should Alric, although he'd never attend something like this, not even for his daughter."

"His loss," Dan said as he walked over to them, "Gerwyn looked elated. But I agree Arianne should have been here, I'm sure she would have been if she was still alive."

"So you believe she is dead?" Maddy asked.

Dan nodded sombrely, "Wild wolfbloods take death very seriously, though I suppose you knew that after the whole William incident. They wouldn't muck around like that, even out of revenge, and there's been no mention of Pedr since the attack, and not really any sign he is alive either. It's not like we could just go and dig up the graves- it's wrong for all of us and it would an incredibly dangerous move. It would be better for Jana to make peace with what happened, after all she has Ceri."

"And us," Emma added, "Rhydian is her brother, by wolfblood law. Wolfblood laws mean more to us than any other laws. You and Jana are sisters by marriage. We are all family now."

"But if Arianne and Pedr did turn out to be alive," Maddy pondered.

"Then it would be up to Jana to decide what to do," Dan replied.

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

"You have to be kidding me!" Rhydian yelled in shock.

"No," Jana replied excitedly, "It's awesome isn't it?"

"Yeah, but you're still very young," Rhydian argued.

Jana rolled her eyes, "Rhydian, Rhydian, Rhydian, bro. Chill. It's going to a year at least to finalise all the paperwork and then to start it all properly, you know what the medical people are like they're so finicky. I won't be able to start the treatments until I'm at least nineteen or even twenty and then we don't know how long it will take to work. Segolia expects it will take at least eighteen months to two years for most people."

"And you're sure this is the only option?" Rhydian asked.

Jana nodded, "If Xander and I want to have children of our own then yes. But for now it's just a secret between us, we're not supposed to tell anyone until its all official and even then we have to be careful."

"What?" Rhydian asked in confusion, "Why?"

"Because some people might go too far," Jana replied.


	45. Chapter 45

**A few years later (Jana is 24)**

"I don't believe this!" Xander yelled into his phone, "Ellie, do you not realise how insane this is?"

Jana was looking at the photos stuck on the outside of her fridge. It surprised her to see just how far her family had come in the space of a few years. She looked at the pictures of her and Xander on their honeymoon in Spain, at the pictures of her daughter, Arianne- ranging from new-born to toddler, and the most recent picture- a grainy photograph of the little bump.

"Mummy," a small girl with wild red hair said, as she struggled to open a jar of strawberry jam, "It stuck. Mummy, why Daddy sad?"

Jana picked up Arianne and cuddled her, "Daddy's not sad, he's talking to Auntie Ellie. He'll play pirates and aliens with you in a minute I promise. Now, you don't need that jam jar you'll be having lunch soon."

Arianne shook her head defiantly, "But I want it Mummy."

"Arianne," Jana said reproachfully, "Give it to Mummy."

"No way," Arianne argued, before hugging the jar to her chest, "Not without a fight."

Jana rolled her eyes. She should have expected this. From the day Arianne was born everyone was telling her just how alike they were- and warning her that she'd be in for a lot of trouble later on.

"Look, if you're not a good girl," Jana began, "You won't be able to play with Lily when we go around to Auntie Shannon and Uncle Tom's place later on."

Shannon and Tom had got married shortly after Shannon's twenty-second birthday. Everything had gone really well, except that Shannon insisted Tom wouldn't DJ at the reception and Xander had left his guitar with his band friends ready for a show the next morning. Mr Jeffries had been DJ the whole night. Jana swore she could still here bad 80s music ringing in her ears.

It was less than a year later that Shannon and Tom had their daughter Lily. Lily looked like a little version of Arianne, except for the brown eyes, the darker skin and hair that could be tamed with a hairbrush.

"Lily's too young," Arianne complained, "I'm a big girl. When's my little bro-sis turning up?"

"Soon," Jana promised her, "And Lily's not boring. I thought she was your best friend."

Arianne frowned in deep thought before passing the jam jar to her mother.

"Here you go Mummy," she said, "Look after the fairies for me please."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

Jana and Xander had been to Shannon and Tom's apartment hundreds of times and were always amazed at how tidy and well design it was. Where Jana and Xander's flat was a jumble of furniture for Xander's old flat and Jana's bedroom at Maddy's house and some new stuff for Arianne, Shannon and Tom's apartment had neatly matching sofa and table and chairs sets. It almost looked like an advert for a furniture store without how perfect it looked.

"So you're absolutely certain?" Shannon asked Xander in concern.

Xander nodded miserably, "I guess that camping trip was less of a camping trip then."

"She is twenty-three," Jana tried to argue, "Even if she acts a lot younger."

"I just can't believe she'd do anything so reckless," Xander argued, "We both grew up in care, and in some respects we were lucky- we did have good parents. I've seen what happens when people grow up in broken families and it's not pretty. She's not us, Jana. She's still at uni, still living in student halls, still getting drunk every weekend. How do you think she's going to manage student debts, a mortgage and a baby?"

"Xander's right," Shannon said, "I'm in exactly the same position Ellie's in now, except I've got my own place and I've got a brilliant job. If I didn't have Tom, I don't know what I'd do."

"Aw," Tom said, earning a thump from his wife.

"Yeah, imagine my sister having to the graveyard slot every night without any help," Xander added.

"Or what happened last New Year's," Jana remembered with a sense of dread, hoping that wouldn't happen any time too soon, "But what can we actually do. Your sister is against abortion except in extreme circumstances and well, wild wolfbloods don't even know what abortion is, I think, and knowing them they'd never let something like that happened willingly."

"I know," Xander said, "And yes, Bryn is Rhydian's brother, but he's not Rhydian. I mean however reckless Rhydian might be sometimes, he's a brilliant father and then he's got Maddy to stop him going too far astray."

"What do we do?" Tom pondered.

"I honestly don't know," Xander said.

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

**Six months later**

"Come on, Jaz," Xander said, "Come on, little guy. It's nap time. No, no, don't try to eat your baby mittens. Come on, Daddy will read you a book and then it will time for a nice nap. And I promise this time your big sister won't come in screaming about an alien invasion, ok?"

Jasper Rhydian looked up excitedly at him with large blue eyes. He looked a lot like his father but there were still little bits of Jana there too- he was just as stubborn and over emotional as his mother and sister could be at times.

"Xander!" Jana called out from the kitchen, "We need a little help here!"

Jasper began to grizzle slightly as if sensing what was going to happen before it did.

The fire alarms sounded loudly and Xander walked towards the kitchen watching Jana bat at the alarm with a towel.

"Daddy, look what we made!" Arianne announced proudly, picking up a baking tray with sticky bright pink oven mits, "We made chocolate cakes!"

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

"She's calling them Tessa and William," Xander said, reading the text message, "Oh, why on earth why she do something like that?"

"What's wrong with-?" Jana asked, "Wait she's having twins?"

Xander nodded, "And she's naming them after book characters. It gets even better trust me."

"Go on," Jana said, bouncing Jasper up and down on her knee, which he seemed to like very much.

"They're getting married," Xander said, "Apparently Bryn found out and in that moment just decided to marry her."

"That's great!" Jana exclaimed.

"No, it's not like that," Xander explained, "It might be normal in some cases for wildies to marry a girl they've made pregnant just out of the blue like that but I want Ellie to marry someone she loves and honestly I don't know if that's Bryn or not. And do you know what I just realised. Ellie couldn't have become pregnant if she hadn't undergone the IVF treatment behind Bryn's back- she would have had to have the treatment to be able to have wolfblood's children."

"Or maybe not," Jana said.

"Why not?" Xander asked confused, "We had to."

"Ceri said she did some research and found out that in some rare cases there were ordinary humans and ordinary wolfbloods who could have children. I'm not a full wolfblood am I? My mother's mother was a human obligate- that could change things. And Ellie took that serum years ago, who knows what effect that might have had."

"Please don't remind me," Xander said.

Jana leaned over to kiss him, "Ellie had always been well. I don't think it's going to do anything bad. It hasn't had any negative effects on her at all."

"I guess we'll have to find out more when we see her next," Xander concluded.

"I guess we will," Jana replied.


	46. Chapter 46

**Three months later (Jana is 25)**

"So are multiple weddings in one day a normal thing for wild wolfbloods?" Xander asked as he rested in the opening of the tent. Jasper was propped up on his stomach playing with some building blocks.

"Not for wild wolfbloods," Jana said, putting a particular emphasis on the wild part, "Not for traditional wild wolfblood weddings. But Ellie's a human and Bryn isn't and Steven's a reluctant tame and Gwyn isn't. My father sees it all as a little sacrilegious and if Ceri and I hadn't practically told him to suck it up and get on with it he never would have allowed it."

"Do you think he'll want to see his grandchildren later on?" Xander asked in a doubtful tone.

"If he doesn't it's his loss," Jana replied angrily, "Arianne's already referring to Ceri and Gerwyn as Nan and Grandpa and Jasper's beginning to copy her now. If my father doesn't get a move on all he's going to find is a little red haired girl and a little dark haired boy who don't know who he is or even care about him once they find out."

"There'll be more than one little girl and one little boy I think," Xander replied.

"Xander!" Jana shrieked, "One, I hope my father will see sense by then and two, remember when I was younger how I used to say I'd never had kids before twenty five and how now I've already got two, I don't plan on having any more children any time soon."

"Well, yes," Xander said, "But see how you changed your mind and how happy you were after then."

"Don't forget who save you from eating Arianne's mud pies yesterday," Jana argued, "You owe me one, or else you'll be eating taglitelli very very soon."

Xander made a retching noise at the thought.

"What was that about taglitelli?" Rhydian asked appearing next to their tent, "It's good to know that we're the only ones who bothered to dress up for the weddings."

Jana looked at her simple summer dress, "It's hardly dressing up. But I know what you mean, they could have at least cleaned their clothes- and themselves."

"I think Jasper's going to upstage the pack leader," Xander said at the toddler waved at his uncle.

"Don't let Alric hear you say that," Rhydian replied, before turning to Jana, "By the way, your father met Arianne."

"What?" Jana asked in confusion and horror, "What happened?"

"Adrian, Cass and Ari were playing by the stream and they came running back into camp," Rhydian explained, "And well Arianne just ran into him, said hi, and then ran off. He didn't even realise who she was until afterwards and then he just looked completely shell-shocked."

"I should go and talk to him," Jana replied.

"Should I come too?" Xander asked, "I could bring Jasper if you think that's a good idea."

Jana shook her head, "It should just be me for now. And Arianne will be back soon, she'll freak out if she can't find us."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

Jana knew immediately where she would find her father. Even the pack changed territory between four to six times a year, Alric always still chose the same place to find peace- the biggest tree in their territory.

He looked up as he noticed his daughter walking towards him. It had been a good few years since he'd last seen her and she'd still been a child then. He couldn't imagine the idea of his Jana having children of her own.

"Hi Father," Jana said before sitting down next to him.

"Hello," he replied in a gruff voice.

"I er," Jana began awkwardly, "I guess you met Arianne."

Alric's face went pale, "So that's her name. I thought I was mishearing it. She does look a lot like you, and your mother, despite everything."

"I have a son," Jana added, "He's a little over a year old. He'll probably be walking soon. His name's Jasper Rhydian."

Alric smiled, "No surprises there. I wish things were different I really do."

"They can be," Jana said, "Just speak to Xander. You let Ellie into your pack, Xander is Ellie's brother- I'm sure you'll like him if you got to know him better."

"What Ceri and Gerwyn allow their cubs to do is up to them," Alric said, "And Ellie got voted into the pack, I voted no to it. You are my cub, Jana, my only cub, and I am your father and you could do so much better than him."

"I'm not a cub anymore, Dad," Jana replied, "And Xander is the best that there is and ever will be. Things are going to be difficult enough as it is without Xander's humanity stopping us from being a family."

"Jana," Alric said, "I have no idea what you're on about with thing being difficult. I've always maintained that the only problem I have with your husband and your cubs is that they are human, or at least part human in the cubs' case. Your family is unnatural."

"That's great logic, Dad," Jana said furiously, "Considering Mum was part human and that I was part human."

"I loved your mother and I love you because you are both wolfbloods," Alric explained, "But I can't say the same for Xander and the cubs."

"We don't know if they cubs will be wolfbloods or not," Jana admitted, "We can't be sure until they're teenagers. Do you think they're just going to except their grandfather turning up out of the blue when they're fourteen? And parents are supposed to love their children unconditionally- just like Mum did, and just like Xander and I and every other good parent I know does! They don't care what species their kids are, they just care that they are their kids!"

Jana began to storm, aware of her cheeks turning red with rage, "Oh, and we're going to New York. Goodbye."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

"Why does the bad man not like me?" Arianne asked her cousin.

"Al?" Adrian asked, "Daddy says he's…"

Adrian whispered the rest to Arianne as she giggled.

"But you can't tell anyone," Adrian told her, "Not even Uncle Aran or Auntie Meinir, and especially not my Mommy or your parents, and definitely not Cass."

As if on que the brown haired girl appeared. Her hair was tied into two pigtails on either side of her face and she looked stressed.

"Adrian, seriously!" Cass exclaimed, "Your section of the tent is a garbage tip! You need to clean it like Mommy told you or I'm tell Mommy and she'll stop you from playing at Ben's house when we get home."

"Ok, ok," Adrian replied, "I'm sorting it."

"And don't tell Arianne anymore of your vile language," Cass reprimanded him, "Come on Arianne let's get ready for the weddings."

Arianne ran after her much taller cousin- Cass was tall even compared to most eight year olds, even wild wolfblood ones."

"Have you met Tessa and Will yet?" Cass asked, "They're so tiny. I can't imagine ever being that small, but Mommy says I was, Adrian was the fat one apparently but don't tell him I said that."

Arianne giggled, "I promise."

"Did you know Auntie Ellie had them brought here?" Cass asked, "Both of them. Daddy says she called up Dumbo and asked him to tell the storks to bring the babies here, and well they usually wouldn't deliver to here because it's not a recognised postal address but I don't know, maybe they paid them a lot of money."

"Or fizzy worms," Arianne added, "I like fizzy worms. Maybe the storks and Dumbo do too. Or maybe chocolate, I like chocolate a lot, even though Mummy doesn't always like it."

"Don't be silly, Ari," Cass said, "Of course they pay the storks with money to deliver the babies."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

"Since when were you moving to New York?" Rhydian asked Jana as she tidied up her tent.

She grimaced, "I should have told you earlier. It kind of just slipped out because I was so angry with my Dad. We were originally planning to tell everyone after the weddings."

"It's ok," Rhydian said, "I understand. Well I don't understand why you'd want to go to New York but I get the waiting to tell us part. I guess you don't need to worry anymore, the whole pack knows now. Alric was fuming about it."

"I'm glad you're not mad at me for not telling you," Jana replied, "New York has the largest Segolia offices in the world, and the best security department in the whole company apparently. Miss Sweeney thought Xander and I were being limited, she wants us to be able to get promotions and meet other wolfbloods working in the company. New York has the highest wolfblood to human ratio and pretty much all of the security team is made up of wolfbloods or people like Xander who are married to wolfbloods. I know it will mean moving away from your mum and dad and Ellie and Bryn and Shannon and Tom and everyone but it feels like the right thing to do- Xander always wanted to travel and I grew up in nomadic community. And can you imagine full moons in Yellowstone? That's where they'll fly us out to."

"I can actually," Rhydian replied, "It's where they fly Maddy and I out to. You'll love it there. It's wolfblood heaven."

"Don't let my father hear you say that," Jana began, "He thinks this place is the best thing since sliced bread."

Rhydian smiled, "I'm surprised you don't too. Come on, I've got somewhere to show you."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAL

"Do you recognise it?" Rhydian asked.

Jana nodded smiling, "It's Big Tree."

Jana looked around her at the way the ground rose and fell and where the moss and ivy grew and wondered how she didn't recognise it before.

"Do you remember how we used to play here all the time?" Rhydian asked, "And I'd always beat you to the top, except once when you Mum told me not to because you were upset."

Jana smiled, "I remember and do you remember how you used to be scared of the ivy until I told you that it was safe and to stop being such a baby."

"No," Rhydian replied indignantly, "That never happened."

"According to your Mum it did," Jana argued, "I might have been smaller but you were always the one who was afraid."

"No I was the sensible one," Rhydian argued, "You just rushed into everything- climbing trees when it was raining, chasing Meinir around the camp, always eating before your father had made offerings- you were a law unto yourself."

"And so is Arianne," Jana admitted, "I had to stop her climbing here only yesterday, I didn't want her falling."

"You only ever fell once," Rhydian replied, "Ok, she's three now. But maybe when she's a little bit older let her climb trees. Wolfblood or not it's still a part of her family's identity to live close to nature, and she'll learn to love it too. I bet she already loves it."

"I know she does," Jana replied, "Just like we both always have."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

"It's all turning into a nightmare!" Ellie yelled when Rhydian and Jana returned to camp.

"Why? What happened?" Jana asked in concern.

"Uncle Alric pulled a nasty on us," Bryn explained, "Refused to let us get married here, even though he's give Gwyn and Steven's marriage the go ahead."

"It's because I'm human," Ellie said, crying, "I thought he never really cared before."

"My father's an idiot," Jana said hugging her friend, "I'll talk to Ceri see if she can shout some sense into him."

"Mum and Dad already tried," Bryn replied, "Alric's not going to change his mind. And you know, El, we know how much we love each other anyway, and who needs some fancy ceremony anyway? People will see it for themselves. I don't need to marry you to tell you have much I love you or that I'm always going to be there for you and the cubs."

"Really?" Ellie asked, "I thought you wanted a wedding."

"I did because I knew you would want a wedding," Bryn asked, "But you're already my wife in my eyes."

Ellie kissed Bryn, "Thank you, and I love you too more than I can explain. I'm sorry for going behind your back to get the IVF, but I know how much the science scared you, I should have been more honest, explained it better. I'm just glad we're together."

Rhydian sighed, before turning to Jana, and whispering, "I'm glad that sorted itself out. I think. At least the BBQ is still going ahead."

"At least there will always be the BBQ," Jana agreed.


	47. Chapter 47

Jana parked the car in the parents and children parking bay, feeling excited. They had said their goodbyes to Shannon, Tom, Lily, Ceri and Gerwyn earlier on and now they had just arrived at the airport.

"It's an adventure!" Jasper announced happily, holding onto his woollen rabbit toy that was missing an eye.

"Yeah, this is actually pretty cool Mum," Arianne replied, before looking back at the book she had been 'reading' for most of the journey.

"Ready?" Xander asked with baited breath.

"Definitely," Jana replied confidently.

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

"Tell me again how we managed to get business class at economy price?" Jana asked, "Segolia or frequent flyer discounts?"

Xander smiled, "Sort of both. We get flyer miles every time we travel on business or to Norway. Those add up over time. This is an eight hour flight and I didn't fancy spending it cramped up in economy with two little kids."

"Neither do I," Jana replied, "And they seem happy too."

"That's because they are napping," Xander said, "They always seem to be arguing and fighting now."

"They'll grow out of it," Jana reassured him, "I was hoping they'd be more like Rhydian and I- they were when they were younger."

"Adrian and Arianne remind me of a younger version of Rhydian and you," Xander said, "The games they play are just like the ones you told me Rhydian and you used to make up as children. And Cass dotes on Jasper. She treats him almost as if he's her little baby."

"I know," Jana replied, "But I hope they won't always argue with each other. It's probably just the age difference. He's just a toddler and she would almost be going off to school in England."

"It's also a gender difference," Xander added, "Arianne's really girly and Jasper's always playing builder or making mud pies. If they had…"

"How many times?" Jana replied exasperated before laughing, "Not before I'm thirty at the least, then we'll consider it. They're a handful on their own without adding another little baby or two into the mix."

"Ok, ok," Xander replied, "I promise I won't go on about it too much before then."

"I think the assistant just went by with a tray filled with cakes," Jana added.

"I told you flying business would be worth it," Xander said.

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

They pulled up outside of the tall red stone building. It was a block of Victorian flat with what appeared to be a small paved front garden, but didn't seem large enough to be a garden. Jana and Xander's new flat was on the second floor, and had been arranged for them by Segolia as a temporary place until somewhere more suitable (in the country) could be arranged. Jana thought it looked beautiful, but was surprised by the contrast between Stoneybridge and New York. In Stoneybridge you could walk a couple of minutes in any direction and end up in dense woodland, in New York everything seemed to be concrete. Xander was very happy with the accommodation, he loved old looking houses and blocks of flats and he thought their new flat looked very elegant.

Jana got out and picked up Jasper from his car seat. He was exhausted, his head rested against Jana's shoulder and he snored quietly. Arianne was far too old for naps (her words not Jana or Xander's) and was doing her best to be quiet for her brother but squealed in excitement when she saw her new 'house'.

Jasper stirred a little but quickly went back to sleep, used to his noisy sister waking him up during naps. Jana worried that he would be like her and sleep over alarms and pretty much everything. Arianne herself wasn't an exceptionally light sleeper but she could be easily woken up, whereas when it came to sleep everything was on Jasper's terms.

Arianne hurried up the steps, before knocking on the door, and yelling, "We're here!"

Xander opened the front door and she burst through looking around in confusion.

"I thought we were living in a new house," Arianne grumbled.

"A new flat," Jana clarified, "Why don't you race Daddy up the steps? Our flat is on the new floor."

"Ok," Arianne said happier, "Come on, Daddy."

"But I'm carrying the suitcase," Xander argued as he watched her dart off.

"And I'm carrying the baby," Jana replied, "Besides it'll make the race fairer."

Xander rolled his eyes before trying to catch up his daughter.

Arianne waited outside the door of the flat, "Oh, Daddy! You are so slow!"

Jana laughed as she walked up the stairs, "It's because Daddy's so old."

"I know, right Mum?" Arianne said with a smile, "We'll have to get him a walking stick for Christmas."

Xander opened the door and Arianne rushed in running from one room to next.

"Wow!" Arianne exclaimed, "It's massive. And all of our things are already here! The fairies are really efficient, aren't they? Much better than Royal Mail."

"You'll have to make sure you write a thank you note to Tinkerbell," Jana told her daughter, "She made sure Hook didn't steal our furniture."

"Mummy don't be silly," Arianne said, "Hook would be more interested in my toys. It must get boring after a while, just sitting around and plotting evil."

"I guess," Xander said, at a loss of what to say.

"Why don't you go and choose your room?" Jana suggested.

"What about Jasper?" Arianne asked concerned, "Oh, it's because I'm older. Ok, I chose the biggest one, because I'm bigger than him so I need more room."

Arianne ran to the largest room, that wasn't filled with her Mum and Dad's furniture and declared that it was hers and that her parents had to knock before entering and that it should be painted pink with sparkly glitter as soon as possible.

Jana smiled, "I think this is all going to work very well."

"So do I," Xander added.

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

Xander sat at the campfire with Arianne and Jasper who were trying to toast marshmallows. Cass and Adrian sat a little further back. Whilst cubs weren't afraid of fire like their parents they were still wary. Xander was sure this was because Cass and Adrian didn't have a human around the house to tell them that fire wasn't always a big scary thing and not any inbuilt genetic thing.

The full moon beamed high above and Xander knew it would be a few hours before it dipped below the horizon. The kids should have all been in bed hours ago but they were all too excited. It had been a good few months since work and school had come together in such a way that they could spend full moons together and whilst they could have just got a baby sitter and Xander could have explored Yellowstone the same way he explored Norway, by Jana's side, he didn't mind playing babysitter for the night.

"Where do you think Mummy is now?" Arianne asked her father.

"Somewhere over there," Xander replied, pointing to a rocky outcrop, "With Uncle Rhydian and Auntie Maddy."

"I wish I could go over there," Jasper said.

"Maybe in a few years' time," Xander replied, although he didn't know for certain if Jasper or Arianne would be wolfbloods or just human. Jana and Xander decided not to test to find out, to them it didn't matter and it wouldn't make them love or treat the cubs any differently.

"Only two more years for us," Adrian said proudly.

"More like four," Cass argued, "Dad didn't transform until he was fourteen and neither did Mum or Auntie Jana. The youngest a member of the wild wolfblood pack ever transformed at was twelve that doesn't mean that there's a high chance of it happening to you."

"I bet you a Snickers and…" Adrian rummaged in his pockets, "Half a packet of Milk Duds that I will transform before I'm thirteen."

"You're on," Cass said, "But please don't give me those Milk Duds. I'm not going to eat them if they've been sitting around for four years."

Adrian sighed, "Whatever Cass. You probably wouldn't eat chocolate then anyway, because you'll be on some teen diet thing. I know what you girls are like. I swear I should be able to receive compensation for having to sit through sappy movies, listening to rubbish boy bands, and surviving endless spa sleepovers."

"You're hardly innocent," Cass argued "How many times have you played your awful music and made me watch action movies and cartoons? And made me play GTA? I should get compensation too."

"You like GTA," Adrian argued.

"Look," Cass said, "I don't have time to argue with you. I promised I would braid Arianne's hair for her. The way Auntie Jana does sometimes."

"Arianne," Adrian said, "Are you betraying me?"

Arianne turned towards him with a smile, "No, not this time. But remember loyalty costs. You still owe me a bar of Hershey's cookies and cream and three ice creams with flakes."

"Arianne," Xander said, "Don't speak to your cousin like that."

"Oh, Daddy," Arianne said apologetically, "I didn't want to be mean. That's why I didn't tell Adrian that I've started charging interest."


	48. Chapter 48

"Could you have chosen anything more wolfblood than meat loaf?" Rhydian asked Jana, who was calling him.

"Erm, hog roast maybe?" Jana suggested, "But we have that all the time, all of us. I thought I'd try something different. Meat loaf has more than just meat in it- breadcrumbs, a lot of veggies…"

"Oh, yes, veggies are so yummy," Rhydian joked, "Although I supposed that's one way of tricking the cubs into eating them. I guess Ellie and Bryn bailed then?"

"Yup," Jana replied, "Although it wasn't really her choice. She didn't know she was too far along to fly."

"What is this now?" Rhydian asked, "Baby number five or six."

"Well there's Olwenna, then there's Tessa and William," Jana began slowly, "James and Johnathon, oh and Helena. So baby number six actually."

"Good grief," Rhydian replied, "How does she do it?"

"How does Ceri do it?" Jana corrected, "How does Ceri do it?"

"And Bryn," Rhydian replied, "It appears our father's absence when we were younger has just made him want to be a super-dad. It's as if he's trying to prove that he can be better than Dad. And honestly Ellie's not as bad a Mum as you think."

"I get most wolfblood families are large," Jana replied, "But you have two soon to be three, and Xander and I only have Arianne and Jasper. I know Gwyn and Steven already have a good few children but Meinir's not even married yet- and she's nearly forty. It just seems a bit extreme."

"Bryn says it's because they are so in love," Rhydian said, before retching, "I don't know how that works."

"I don't want to even think about it," Jana replied, "What time are you going to be here?"

"Hopefully around five," Rhydian replied, "Factoring in two coffee stops, and a stop at Subways or McDonalds for lunch."

"Coffee?" Jana asked, "But you and Maddy hate coffee."

"Adrian," Rhydian replied, "He thinks he should starting drinking more manly beverages rather than fizzy pop. He keeps on talking about how he is on the cusp of adulthood and I even caught him trying to use aftershave once. It's all normal pre-transformation stuff, either that or he's trying to get a later curfew by pretending to be more responsible and mature. And as for Cass, she only drinks three cups of organic green tea a day, because it's healthy and soothing and sophisticated."

Jana laughed, "Well at least she didn't turn out the way you and Maddy did after your first transformations."

"I guess," Rhydian replied, "But you were hardly an angel either. You apparently challenged your father to Broider."

"At least they're both doing well," Jana replied, "See you soon and don't eat too much. Shannon says she's bringing us dessert."

"Sounds awesome," Rhydian replied, "See you in a few."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

"Adrian Gareth Morris!" Cass yelled.

"Cassidy Sarah Morris!" Adrian yelled back in reply.

"Jasper Rhydian Marten," Jasper added with a cheeky grin.

"Arianne-," the red haired girl began.

"Adrian," Cass yelled, "First you eat tons of cookies even though Auntie Jana has been slaving away all day to make us dinner, then you come in here and start playing video games in front of the twins and making a mess! Help me tidy up, Auntie Jana doesn't want her house to be messy and we are guests here we need to act with respect."

Adrian made a salute sign when Cass's back was turned and Arianne burst out laughing. Cass turned around red in the face and fuming.

"Now, Adrian!" Cass added, before her brother reluctantly got up off the couch.

"Let's go find Monty," Jasper suggested to her sister.

"Can we come too?" Eliya suggested as Darius watched them all silently.

Jasper looked at his sister, asking for permission.

"Only if you listen what we say," Arianne said, "Because we're going to have to go on an adventure and we have to be very very careful because there'll be loads of monsters and we don't want them to eat us."

"I want to stay here," Darius complained.

"I need to look after Darius and Eliya," Lily began, "They should both stay here. It will be safer."

"But I want to go," Eliya complained.

"The monsters will be asleep later," Arianne explained, "We can go then. Come on Jasper."

Arianne walked into the corridor holding Jasper's hand and looking both ways for parents.

"You told them that to stop the little kids from following us, didn't you? Jasper asked, "You told me you were too old for all than monster nonsense."

"Sort of," Arianne admitted, "The twins can be so babyish at times. As for the monster stuff- well of course monsters exist, but I'm not afraid of them. I know how to fight them now, I just get my sword and slay them and sometimes they just run away because they are so afraid. Or I get Mommy to chase them away, because you know how awesome Mommy is in wolf form."

"Do you think Daddy is awesome too?" Jasper asked.

"Yeah, of course," Arianne replied, "He's a spy. That's why he travels so much because the bad guys are always on the run and Daddy has to track them down."

"What do you think Daddy does when he catches them?" Jasper asked.

Arianne shrugs, "Probably sends them to the naughty chair or tells them they can't have candy for a week. It's what Mommy and Daddy do whenever we are naughty."

"That would make sense," Jasper replied, "Now where's Monty? Moggie? Monty?"

They had bought the cat only a few months ago and had referred to it as the Moggie until that name had stuck and the cat only answered to that. They decided to call him Monty because it sounded closest to Moggie but Jasper sometimes alternated between the two, believing the cat liked to have two names because it made her feel special.

An answering meow came from underneath the hallway radiator. The tabby cat sat licking his macaroni cheese covered paws and face with much enjoyment and a little irritating and being so messy. His tail danced in the air, its black tip thumping on the floor every so often, his ears darted this way and that.

When the cat had finished cleaning himself he walked towards the cubs, rubbing himself against their legs but when Arianne reached to pick him up he darted away and hid underneath her parents' bed.

"Dinner!" they heard their mother yell and darted to the table.

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

"Daddy!" Arianne said, hugging her father, "I thought you weren't coming home till next week. I guess the Russians weren't so hard to capture."

"I was in Norway," Xander explained, "And I'm not a spy, Arianne. I know I can't tell you much about my work but it'll make sense when you're older. Look, I got these for you and your brother."

Xander pulled out two snow globes with little mountains and polar bears inside. Arianne shook her merrily watching the glitter snow trickle down. Jasper did the same before exclaiming, "Thank you, Daddy! I miss you so so so much!"

Xander laughed, "I missed you all too."

"Are there carrots in this?" Adrian asked, picking at the meat loaf.

"Stop playing with your food," Cass reprimanded him, "Eat properly."

"Listen to your sister," Rhydian added.

"Dad, seriously," Adrian began, "You know I don't mind carrots. I was just asking."

"Adrian wasn't being rude, Dad," Maddy replied.

"Mom that makes no sense and stopped being cool when we were five," Cass complained, "By the way do you think Auntie Jana's ever tried quinoa?"

Rhydian shrugged before turning to Maddy and whispering, "What on earth quin-noah?"

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

_Jana remembered the feeling on the cold metal door handle in her hand and the way it squeaked at little when you tried to turn and then you had to pull at it because it always jammed but you had to be careful not to hit yourself in the face._

_She remembered seeing three figures and recognised Xander immediately. She thought the other two were friends from work- maybe Sophia and Marcus or Elizabeth and Jason, they often come over for dinner and there was always enough to go around._

_First she noticed the red hair. The woman's hair was a dark scarlet red, and curly, but not frizzy somehow. Her eyes were bright emerald and she had freckles on her cheeks and nose. She must have been in her late forties or fifties and had little laugh lines around her eyes. The man standing next to her was clearly her son, he was in his late teens or early twenties and wore his hair in a fashionably messy style and wore a rock band t-shirt and baggy jeans. His eyes too were bright emerald._

_That's how Jana knew everything she'd been told was a lie._

_That's how she knew Xander had been looking behind her back, and she realised she didn't care._

_That's how she found her that her Mum and brother were still alive._

The tea cup trembled in Jana's hand and her breath was shaky, her mother and brother sat near her on a separate couch in the living room and Jana had blocked the doorway with an ottoman to stop the cubs from wandering in.

Arianne looked at her daughter sympathetically and with an expression that urged her to take as much time as she needed. Pedr just looked around the room awkwardly.

"I thought you were dead," Jana said barely above a whisper.

"I'm so sorry," Arianne said, trying to hold back tears, "If I had known… After we left your father's pack, Elgar exiled both of us. We would have died if Segolia hadn't found us, it was pure chance. They said they would help start a new life, integrate into a tame lifestyle. We lived and still do live, in a tame commune outside of Portland. It's a special place, for wildies turned tames who need to learn about human life. We still stay there because that's where our friends are, and because Segolia employs me to help the wildies transition. There are more women in my position that I would like to contemplate."

"And there's plenty of work," Pedr added, "I'm technically an engineer but I help with all kinds of maintenance stuff in return for accommodation and most importantly- food. Sometimes I even DJ there although the boss would never let us build a nightclub."

"The boss?" Jana asked.

"Miss Sweeney," Arianne contemplated, "She set up the project for women who had been abandoned. See Elgar wasn't the only one who alpha stringing along women for fun. I did love your father, but only as a friend- and he knew that, but he decided to love more than that. I didn't realise that loved me like a husband should, had I known I would have never agreed to anything Elgar suggested. Elgar said Alric would understand, that they had been best friends and he would be happy at the arrangement. He thought he could merge the two packs and that his sons would make good matches with Meinir and one of the other cubs, and you would have been free to marry Rhydian of course. Instead it was a trick- wolfblood men don't always respect women."

Jana nodded in understanding, "Father and I haven't talked in a few years."

"I see," Arianne said, "Might I ask why?"

Jana nodded, "He doesn't like who I'm married too and thinks my kids are an abomination."

"Typical Alric," Arianne said, "He'd been frightened of his own tail if someone told him it was sacrilegious. I thought he would warm to Rhydian over time, see that the lad was wild at heart and accept him. Calling your children an abomination- it's absurd and disgusting, and you were right to cut him off for that. Your children should be the most important thing in your life, and I wish I remembered that rather than running off after dreams."

"Mum," Jana began, "its ok. You were just trying to make the best of a bad situation. The thing is- Rhydian and I- we're not married. He's not my husband. Xander, the man who brought you here, he's my husband."

"Holy smoking bacon!" Pedr exclaimed, "But I thought Rhydian was the love of your life? That was what Mom told me. You used to write bad poetry about him and go on and on about him all the time, and that little toy."

"I still have it," Jana said, pointing to the stuffed toy sitting on the top of a tall bookshelf, "Carefully out of the way of the children and the cat. Rhydian and I performed a ritual to become siblings, the Rite of Kinship, when we were teenagers. I married a…"

Jana stopped.

"A human," Arianne continued, "So did my father technically and he loved her more than it should be possible to love anyone, and I understood why. I'm not your father, I want to know your husband and your children, and I want them to know me and your brother. But just out of curiosity who did Rhydian marry? I'm assuming he is married."

"Yes," Jana replied, "Married with two children, Cassidy and Adrian they're fourteen, and there little brother or sister is going to be born in about five months' time. He married Maddy."

"Maddy?" Arianne asked in surprise, "I'm sorry to say it and I wouldn't have dreamed to tell you when we were younger but I did see that coming. I wanted you to be happy and knew you'd understand with time, I even thought there might be a chance Rhydian would change his mind but I guess as long as you are all happy."

"I am," Jana reassured her, "I have a wonderful husband, Xander, and two little children, Jasper Rhydian who is six and Arianne who is eight."

"Arianne," Jana's mother said, "Oh darling, that's so sweet of you."

"Is she the red haired one who tried to launch mashed potato at me when I was walking through the door?" Pedr asked.

Jana nodded, "Lily would never do anything like that. Shannon and Tom would have a fit."

"And you wouldn't?" Arianne asked.

"Mum," Jana began, "You know what I was like as a kid. You have to pick your battles and not freak out at everything."

Arianne laughed, "I'm glad to see that she'll take after us. Especially considering how beautiful and accomplished you've turned out."

"Mum," Jana replied embarrassed.

"And I'm sure Jasper will be a charmer," Arianne replied, "I've seen the pictures, and his father looks very handsome. I bet any sane wildy would break an oath to propose to Xander, even Aran."

"Mum!" Jana and Pedr said at the same time.

"Oh honestly," Arianne replied, "I'm your mother! It's my job to embarrass you. And is that a picture of… no it can't be… and all those little black haired children, there's millions… is that really Bryn?"

Jana nodded, "He married Elloisya, Xander's sister. They live in New Forest National Park in England, he works for the National Trust and Ellie works for the local council. His eldest Olwenna is from a previous relationship and all the others are Ellie's and Bryn's. Oh and Ceri and Gerwyn got back together."

"Oh, I knew they would," Arianne said, "I knew they loved each other really, they were just too proud to admit it. And is your uncle still the same, wannabe hipster mixed in with clown?"

Jana laughed, "Yes, definitely. But Rhydian turned out ok, Bryn's still a lot like Ceri- very cautious and easily worried."

"Well I need to meet all of the young ones," Arianne declared, "And knowing my family I will surprised if my grandchildren haven't been listening at the door the whole time!"

"They won't have been," Jana explained, "They'll be having dessert now."

BREAK_BREAK_BREAK_BREAK

Jasper entered the room timidly, holding his woollen rabbit toy to his chest. His sister nudged him forward a little too harshly looking at his insistently.

"Aren't you such a big boy?" Arianne said to Jasper, "You're so much like your father. Come on, don't be afraid, I'm your Grandmamma."

"Granny," Jasper tried out, experimentally, walking towards his grandmother timidly before realising that she looked so much like his Mommy and sister that there was no way she couldn't be related to him.

"Mommy said to say about earlier," Arianne apologized to Pedr, "I was actually aiming for Cass. She's my cousin, well sort of, she's Uncle Rhydian's daughter, so she's not our blood cousin like Tessa or William are. She can be really winy and doesn't have a great imagination but she knows how to braid hair really well."

Pedr smiled, "You're forgiven, as long as you've saved some dessert for me."

"And me!" her grandmother piped up, as she hugged Jasper.

Arianne bit her lip, "Mommy told me it was bad to lie, so I can't say there is any chocolate cake left."

Pedr laughed, "It's ok."

"You can call me Ari," Arianne said, to her uncle and grandmother, "Because it'll probably get confusing otherwise and because Adrian says it's a proper pirates name and I can't be in Tinkerbell's pirate school if I don't have a good name."

"No, you can't," Arianne said, "Pirates have to have really fierce names. What do you learn at pirate school?"

"Sword fighting," Ari replied, "We're hoping to track down the lost boys and defeat Hook once and for all. And Adrian's going to help me, we're best friends, but he's too old to go to pirates' school."

"I thought you were my best friend," Jasper complained.

"You can have more than one best friend," Arianne reassured him, "Your sister loves you lots and lots and lots."

Jasper giggled and his grandmother tickled him.

"Yeah, Granny's right," Ari replied, "What do you think Uncle Pedr?"

"Of course I agree with you," her uncle replied, "It makes perfect sense."

Cass knocked on the door, but Adrian pushed past her.

"Would it kill you to be polite for once?" Cass asked her brother.

"Are you ok, Ari?" Adrian asked his younger cousin, "Do you want to play football at the park?"

"Maybe later," Ari said, "And only if Uncle Pedr and Granny can be on my team."

"But who will be on Jasper's team?" Arianne argued.

"Ok, ok," Ari said, "You can be on Jasper's team with Lily.

"You must be Adrian," Arianne said, "You are so much like your father."

"So I've been told," Adrian replied, "Look I don't mean to be rude or anything. But Cass nags, she's too much like my Mom and I've always seen Arianne as my little sister. I love and protect her, and that's that, even if she thinks I'm too overprotective. I know you're her grandmother but please don't muck her around like Alric did. I just want Arianne to be happy."

"Of course," Arianne replied, "And I'm back for good now and so is Pedr. You and Arianne are like Rhydian and Jana and I'm going to respect that and treasure it.

"We're all back together now, one big pack, one big family, and that's how it's going to stay."

THE END

**Thanks for all of the reviews and the favourites and follows. :) **


End file.
